Ideal self and ought-to self of simultaneous learners of multiple foreign languages

ABSTRACT

This study explores the motivation of five university students who simultaneously studied L2 English and additional L3s (Chinese, Japanese and Korean) in a language specialist major in a Thai university. It aims to start filling the gap in research on the motivation of multiple language learners across their different languages. The findings show that while English did threaten some learners’ motivation to study other foreign languages (FLs), it also encouraged them to study other FLs. Learners of multiple FLs developed unique motivational systems in which the interrelationships of multiple motivations were dynamic and complex. Students’ motivation to study other FLs was mainly generated by the immediate need and the imagined future use of that particular language.

KEYWORDS:

• Motivation
• L2 motivational self system
• ideal self
• ought-to self
• third language acquisition
• L3 motivation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 Etic analyses are based on the use of carefully defined and relatively stable concepts from the analytic language of the social sciences, which allows generalisations and comparative research across languages, situations and cultures. Emic analyses, on the other hand, focus on the participants' perspectives and interpretations of behaviour, events and situations using the descriptive language of participants (Pike, 1964). Generalisations are impossible with such a perspective.