1、1Motivation For A Second or Foreign Language LearningAbstract. Motivation is a frequently used word both in our daily work and study，which is an important factor which can greatly influence the achievement of learners second language or foreign language acquisition. Speaking of the history of resear
2、ch on Motivation， Gardner and Lamber and their associates should come first，because they have done the most important work，which made the most outstanding contributors in this field. There are several kinds of motivation ，like instrumental motivation and integrative motivation， and intrinsic motivat
3、ion and extrinsic motivation，and there are some relevant debates between them. Through the current researches on the application of motivation in learning and teaching，we can see how effective the motivational system promoted within cooperative situations is，although there is numbers of different mo
4、tivational aspects. Maybe more researches should be done，but we can just draw a periodical conclusion that motivation in language learning is a very complicated psychological phenomenon，and it is also the single most influential factor in learning a new language. 2Key words: Motivation；Second langua
5、ge；Learning；Teaching. 1. Introduction Motivation is a frequently used word both in our daily work and study. A teacher might encourage his/her students by saying Given motivation, anyone can learn a language. Thus, it shows in language learning that motivation is very crucial, and actually the same
6、as aptitude, intelligence and attitudes, it is an important factor which can greatly influence the achievement of learners second language or foreign language acquisition. Skehan (1989) asserts that motivation appears to be the second strongest predictor of success, trailing only aptitude. Then, wha
7、t is the notion of motivation? In general terms, it refers to the effort which learners put into leaning a second or foreign language as a result of their need or desire to learn it. In recent researches, desire to achieve a goal is usually understood as orientations. Belmechri and Hummel (p 239) in
8、 their survey suggest that the prediction of motivation by orientations may be about 2/5 (40%). Therefore it is useful to know about students orientations. Besides, all studies of motivation as a predictor of success in second or foreign 3language learning consistently define motivation in relation
9、to attitudinal variables, whether towards the target language, target language speakers and target language community and their interaction with each other. (Lin, p22) It is the reason that case researchers mainly focus on them. 2. The History of Research on Motivation Speaking of the researching wo
10、rk on motivation, people will naturally think of the most outstanding contributors in this field Gardner and Lamber and their associates, because they have done the most important work. (Gardner, p 51) In 1980s, Gardner and Lamber started their research. The original theory was an outgrowth of Mowre
11、rs views (1950) on individual development which emphasize the importance of identification with a valued person. They (1972) suggested that those people who identify positively in this way would like to resember the foreign peoples concerned, to understand their culture and be able to participate in
12、 it. This pattern of motivation they label an integrative orientation. They also described an instrumental orientation to language learning. This type of motivation is based on the advantages that can accuse if a language is known. (Peter Skehan, p53) Their research since then has linked cognitive f
13、actors with affective factors, where 4motivation and attitude are considered to relate directly to both formal and informal language learning. At the same time, other notable related researchers such as Schumann, Giles and Byrne and Krashen have also provided their different models to contend. It is
14、 necessary now to have a look at different definitions of motivation developed by many researchers. 3. Definitions of Several kinds of Motivation and the Relevant Debate In Rod Elliss Second Language Acquisition (p715), he himself having not done any research on motivation, he could not give his own
15、 but several researchers are mentioned in the book. Gardner and Lambert come the first because of their influential status or main body of work they have done in this field. They distinguish instrumental motivation, which occurs when a learner has a functional goal, such as to get a job, pass an exa
16、mination, to meet the educational requirement, to use in his/her job, to use on holiday in the country, to read useful material in the target language and exploit members of the foreign culture, etc. (Wilkins, p184) and integrative motivation, which occurs when a learner wishes to identify with the
17、culture of L2 group. H. Douglas Brown in his book Principles of Language 5Learning and Teaching (p155) talks of assimilative motivation which is claimed by Graham. Graham thought that integrative motivation had been too broadly defined in previous research. He then made a distinction between integra
18、tive and assimilative motivation. Integrative motivation is the desire on the part of a language learner to learn the second language in order to communicate with, or find out about, members of the second language group. Assimilative motivation is the drive to become an indistinguishable member of a
19、 speech community, and it usually requires prolonged contact with the second language culture. Assimilative motivation is characteristic of persons who, perhaps at a very young age, learn a second language and second culture in order to identify almost exclusively with that second culture. Thus, see
20、n in this light, one can be integratively oriented without desiring to lose oneself in the target culture. In the same book, Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation was introduced to readers. Edward Deci defined intrinsic motivation: Intrinsically motivated activities are ones for which there is no appar
21、ent reward except the activity itself. People seem to engage in the activities for their own sake and not because they lead to an extrinsic reward Intrinsically motivated 6behaviors are aimed at bringing about certain internally rewarding consequences, namely, feelings of competence and self-determi
22、nation. Extrinsically motivated behaviors, on the other hand, are carried out in anticipation of a reward from outside and beyond the self. Typical extrinsic rewards are money, prizes, grades, and even certain types of positive feedback. Behaviors initiated solely to avoid punishment are also extrin
23、sically motivated, even though numerous intrinsic benefits can ultimately accuse to those who, instead, view punishment avoidance as a challenge that can build their sense of competence and self-determination. The above mentioned concepts of motivation are so far commonly seen in the leading books o
24、n applied linguistics. As have been said before, in this area far and away the most important work done has been by Robert Gardner earlier with Wallace Lambert, and later with research associates the University of Western Ontario (Skehan, p52), they are the master researchers and the definitions of
25、motivation they built are widely recognized ones. Other researchers need to listen to their voices. Gardner and Lambert in their book, Attitudes and Motivation 7describe some case studied and illustrate two important orientations in dome detail: an instrumental outlook, reflecting the practical valu
26、e and advantage of learning a new language, and an integrative outlook, reflecting a sincere and personal interest in the people and culture represented by the other group. It was authors hunch that an integrative orientation would sustain better the long-term motivation needed for the very demandin
27、g task of second or foreign language learning. Spolsky (Brown, p154) found that integrative motivation generally accompanied higher scores on proficiency task in a foreign Language in his study. He reached the conclusion that integrative motivation might be an important requirement for successful la
28、nguage learning indeed. And actually some teachers and researchers have even gone so far as to claim that integrative motivation is absolutely essential for successful second language learning. This leads one to explore the reason why they hold the view. Nevertheless some case studied have provided
29、evidence to challenge this claim. Yasmeen Lukmani (Brown, p154) demonstrated that among Marathi-speaking Indian students leaning English in India, those with higher instrumental 8motivation scored higher in tests of English proficiency. Gardner and Lambert themselves in the Philippine study found th
30、e instrumental approach to language study is extremely effective. The main explanation is that because Gardners work has been carried out exclusively I a Canadian context. A primary claim is that Anglophone Canadians (primarily in a bilingual context) are more motivated by integrative motivation (po
31、sitive attitude toward French speakers) than by an instrumental motivation (positive views of the rewards of learning French, a utilitarian motive). Therefore, integrative motivation is hypothesized to do a better predictor of second language success than instrumental motive. The objection of other
32、researchers to Gardners views is that the results are local to the Canadian situation rather than being globally applicable. Motivation could differ from culture to culture. Local conditions may play significant roles in motivations for language learning. Gass (p253) gave an example to illustrate th
33、is. He said that in the Northwest Amazon spouses must come from different ethnic groups. Then he asked whether the motivation to learn ones spouses language more instrumental or integrative. The fact is that in many non-9English speaking countries, especially in Third World countries where English h
34、ad become an international language, English can be acquired very successfully for instrumental reasons alone. (Brown, p154) The interesting thing is that, even Gardner himself, with his associates, have recently found that certain contexts point toward instrumental orientation as an effective motiv
35、e for language success and that others favor integrative motivation. However, such variable findings in empirical investigations do not necessarily invalidate the integrative instrumental structure. IT has been pointed out once more that there is no single means of learning a second or foreign langu
36、age: Some learners in some contexts are more successful in learning a language if they are integratively oriented, and others in different contexts benefit form an instrumental orientation. As to other kinds of motivation, some researchers, such as Rossier (Rod Ellis, p516) argues that motivation ar
37、e intrinsic interest should be emphasized, because without the desire to communicate, an integrative motivation may not be effective. It is the need to get meaning across and the pressure experienced when this is achieved that provides the motivation to learn a second language. Crooks and Schmidt (1
38、991) and Brown (1990) 10also strongly favors intrinsic orientations, especially doe ling-term retention. Maslow (1970) claimed that intrinsic motivation is clearly superior to extrinsic. It is important to make a distinction between the intrinsic extrinsic instruct and Gardners integrative instrumen
39、tal motivation. One essential difference between the intrinsic extrinsic continuum and integrative instrumental continuum is that the former is free of the cultural beliefs and attitudes of learners and teachers, while the latter relies exclusively on a social-psychological approach. That is why the
40、 intrinsic extrinsic continuum has almost got the same significance as the integrative instrumental one. And this intrinsic extrinsic continuum in motivation is applicable to foreign language classmates around the world to harness the power of intrinsically motivated learners who are striving for ex
41、cellence, autonomy and self-actualization. (Brown, p157) It is likely that the relationship between motivation and achievement is an interactive one. A high level of motivation does stimulate learning, but perceived success in achieving L2 goals can help to maintain existing motivation and even create new types. Rod Elliss conclusion (p515) finally put an end to the chicken-and-egg debate.
