Types of Motivation

Types of Motivation
Contents
 Definitions of motivation
 Why do people learn a second language?
 Good L2 learners
 Theories of motivation
 Factors that affect motivation
 Implications and strategies for teachers
“I don’t know what motivation is
but it definitely keeps me going.”
Motivation is a desire to achieve a
goal, combined with the energy to
work towards that goal. Students
who are motivated have a desire
to undertake their study and
complete the requirements of
their course.
motivation is a set of energetic forces
that originate both within as well as
beyond an individual’s being, to initiate
behavior, and to determine its form,
direction, intensity, and duration.”
Why do people learn foreign
language?
Here are a few suggestions:
 Fulfill school/university
requirements
 Function and compete effectively in the global economy of today and
the future
 Increase job opportunities and salary potential
 Develop intercultural sensitivity, increasing global understanding
 Improve English vocabulary and language proficiency in order to
communicate with members of that language community.
 Improve one's education
 Enhance travel and study abroad opportunities
 Enjoy great literary and musical masterpieces and films in their original
language
 Improve likelihood of acceptance into university and graduate schools
 Gain social power (prestige)
 Please one's parents
After all, we, as teachers, need to find the student's motives so
that we can accommodate them.
Good L2 learners
Research has shown that the use of specific learning strategies &
techniques while studying a second or foreign language leads to
success. "The conscious, tailored use of such strategies is
related to language achievement and proficiency. (Oxford, 1994)
Rubin (1975) suggested that good L2 learners
 are willing and accurate guessers;
 have a strong drive to communicate;
 are often uninhibited, and if they are, they combat inhibition by
using positive self-talk, by extensive use of practicing in private,
and by putting themselves in situations where they have to
participate communicatively.
 are willing to make mistakes;
 focus on form by looking for patterns and analyzing;
 take advantage of all practice opportunities;
 monitor their speech as well as that of others;
 and pay attention to meaning.
Theories of Motivation
Gardner and Lambert proposed integrative
motivation and instrumental motivation from a
social psychological point of view. (Gardner and
Lambert 1959, 1972)
1.Integrative motivation: aim of learning is to learn about the

language group, or to meet more and different people from
the target language community, to the point of eventually
being accepted as a member of that group.
2. Instrumental motivation: reasons of L2 learning reflect the

more utilitarian value of linguistic achievement, such as
benefiting in an occupation.
Self-determination
Theory
Self-determination theory was addressed by Deci (1975), Deci &

Ryan (1985) and became an influential idea.
Intrinsic motivation: the performance of a task for its own

sake. It values rewards gained through the process of task
completion, regardless of any external rewards.
 Extrinsic motivation: an inner drive, impulse,
emotion, or desire that is derived from other
people, or the real world. e.g. learn L2 for money,
prizes, grades, certain types of positive feedback
Also, it should be noted that, the self-

determination theory evolved to the popular
concept of “learner autonomy”. Its relation with
motivation is gathering attention. (Benson, 2000;
Ushioda, 1996, 1998, 2007; Ehrman and Dörnyei,
1998)
Factors that affect motivation
"Motivation to learn is a competence acquired through general

experience but stimulated most directly through modeling,
communication of expectations, and direct instruction or
socialization by significant others (especially parents and
teachers)." (Brophy, 1987)
"To a very large degree, students expect to learn if their

teachers expect them to learn."
(Stipek, 1988)
Several factors affect students' motivation to learn a second

language.
.
Internal Factors
 Age
 Gender
 Religion
 Goals
 Interest/curiosity
 Attitude
 Expectancy
 Competence
 Native language proficiency
External Factors
Teachers
 Encouragement
 Expectations
 Feedback
 Scaffolding
 Task presentation
 Teaching strategies & techniques
 Rewards
Course content & Classroom
atmosphere
 Relevance
 Attractiveness
 Challenge
 Relaxed, positive atmosphere (low
affective filter)
 Social Identity
(Peer groups)
Teenagers tend to be heavily influenced by their peer
groups. In second language learning, peer pressure often
undermines the goals set by parents and teachers. Peer
pressure often reduces the desire of the student to work
toward native pronunciation, because the sounds of the
target language may be regarded as strange. For learners of
English as a second language, speaking like a native speaker
may unconsciously be regarded as a sign of no longer
belonging to their native-language peer group. In working
with secondary school students, it is important to keep these
peer influences in mind and to foster a positive image for
proficiency in a second language.
 Home support
Support from home is very important for students' motivation to learn

a second language. If parents value both the native language and
English, communicate with their children in whichever language is
most comfortable, and show support for and interest in their
children's progress, the children will definitely be more motivated to
learn the second language.
Learning environment
In order for the students to be motivated, the learning environment

needs to be free from anxiety; the student should not feel
threatened or intimidated. In order for him/her to speak, s/he
needs to feel s/he will be heard and that what s/he is saying is
worth hearing.
Implications and Strategies for
Teachers
Some teaching strategies that can be used to foster motivation
and provide better transfer opportunities of language skills
include the following: (Ngeow, Karen Yeok-Hwa, 1998)

* Encourage learners to take ownership in learning.
Have learners take ownership of the learning assignment by letting them identify and decide
for themselves relevant learning goals. This will motivate them to apply what they have
learned to attain these learning goals.
* Promote intentional cognition or mindfulness to learning in
various contexts.
Learners must be able to practice language in multiple contexts in order to bridge domains
and foster active abstraction of concepts learned (Bransford, et al. 1990). This will help
learners recognize the relevance and transferability of different learning skills or knowledge.
* Increase authenticity of learning tasks and goals.
Learners should recognize a real need to accomplish learning goals that are relevant and
holistic (rather than task-specific). This prepares them for the complexities of real-world
tasks that require them to use language skills and knowledge that have to be continually
transferred.
"The best way to create interest in a subject is
to render it worth knowing, which means to
make the knowledge gained usable in one's
thinking beyond the situation in which
learning has occurred." Bruner (1960, p.31)

Oxford & Shearin (1996:139) also offer
Practical Suggestions for Teachers:
1. Teachers can identify why students are studying the new language.
Teachers can find out actual motivations (motivation survey).
Information on motivation can be passed on to the next class in a portfolio.
Teachers can determine which parts of L2 learning are especially valuable for
the students.
2. Teachers can help shape students' beliefs about success and failure in L2
learning.
Students can learn to have realistic but challenging goals.
Teachers can learn to accept diversity in the way students establish and meet
their goals, based on differences in learning styles.
3. Teachers can help students improve motivation by showing that L2 learning can
be an exciting mental challenge, a career enhancer, a vehicle to cultural
awareness and friendship and a key to world peace.
4. Teachers can make the L2 classroom a welcoming, positive place where
psychological needs are met and where language anxiety is kept to a minimum.
5. Teachers can urge students to develop their own intrinsic rewards through
positive self-talk, guided self-evaluation, and mastery of specific goals, rather
than comparison with other students. Teachers can thus promote a sense of
greater self-efficacy, increasing motivation to continue learning the L2.
Motivated students (and children)
are, to teachers (and parents)
precious commodities to be
cherished. A motivated student
(child) is more likely to learn.

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Types of Motivation

1.Integrative motivation: aim of learning is to learn about the

2. Instrumental motivation: reasons of L2 learning reflect the

Self-determination theory was addressed by Deci (1975), Deci &

Intrinsic motivation: the performance of a task for its own

Also, it should be noted that, the self-

"Motivation to learn is a competence acquired through general

"To a very large degree, students expect to learn if their

Several factors affect students' motivation to learn a second

Support from home is very important for students' motivation to learn

In order for the students to be motivated, the learning environment

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