Motivation, Language Identity and the L2 Self

Due to its theoretical and educational significance within the language learning process, the study of L2 motivation has been an important area of second language acquisition research for several decades. Over the last few years L2 motivation research has taken an exciting new turn by focusing increasingly on the language learner’s situated identity and various self-perceptions. As a result, the concept of L2 motivation is currently in the process of being radically reconceptualised and re-theorised in the context of contemporary notions of self and identity. With contributions by leading European, North American and Asian scholars, this volume brings together the first comprehensive anthology of key conceptual and empirical papers that mark this important paradigmatic shift.

Zoltán Dörnyei was a Professor of Psycholinguistics at the University of Nottingham, UK. He published extensively on second language acquisition and learner psychology, with a particular focus on language learner motivation.

Ema Ushioda is a Professor and Head of Applied Linguistics, University of Warwick, where she has been based since 2002. Ema is known for her work on motivation and autonomy in language learning, particularly for promoting qualitative approaches to researching motivation, and she has published widely in these areas. Her books include International Perspectives on Motivation: Language Learning and Professional Challenges(2013), Teaching and Researching Motivation (co-authored by Dörnyei, 2011), Motivation, Language Identity and the L2 Self (co-edited by Dörnyei, 2009), and the forthcoming title Language Learning Motivation: An Ethical Agenda for Research (2020).