MOTIVATIONAL AND ATTITUDINAL FACTORS AS PREDICTORS OF PERSISTENCE IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY (SOCIOPSYCOLOGICAL, SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION, AFFECTIVE FACTORS)

The present study investigated the predictive ability of motivational and attitudinal factors in continuation of foreign language study beyond second level among high school students. The primary questions that guided the study are the following: (1) What motivations do U.S. high school students have for studying foreign languages? and (2) What factors, including motivational and attitudinal and others, are associated with the decision to continue or discontinue foreign language study after second year in high school? Do these differ for the two languages and three schools represented in the sample? The goal of the study was to identify the optimal number of factors needed to distinguish continuing foreign language students from discontinuing students resulting in profiles of these two groups of students. Some recommendations are made for interventions for enhancing student motivation in foreign language learning.;The majority of research concerned with motivational and attitudinal factors and second or foreign language learning has used the integrative-instrumental orientation. In the present study, rather than impose a preconceived orientation, motivations for studying a foreign language and for continuing or discontinuing were elicited from the students using an openended format. A survey-type questionnaire was constructed from these responses. The questionnaire was administered to three classes of French students and three classes of Spanish students drawn from three schools in two different geographic locations.;The major findings were that motivational and attitudinal factors distinguished between continuing and discontinuing students better than any of the other factors included in the study. However, a combination of factors including motivations and attitudes, grade in foreign language, and grade level in school correctly classified the highest percentage of continuing and discontinuing foreign language students. Continuing students were found to have more intrinsic interest in language study than discontinuers. It was found that factors associated with continuation and discontinuation in foreign language study beyond second level varied according to school and language of study supporting a sociopsychological theory of second language learning.