Carrot or stick?: an investigation into motivation orientations in learning English among Hong Kong Chinese students

Abstract

This paper publishes the results of a study of Hong Kong Chinese upper secondary students (Form 4 and Form 6) regarding their motivation orientations for learning English. The study analysed male and females student groups using Gardner and Lambert's (1972) 'extrinsic and intrinsic motivation' theoretical framework in order to elicit the most revealing results from the data. Findings will have meaningful implications for pedagogy, helping educators identify strategies more appropriate to distinct Chinese-speaking second-language student groups.

Understanding the importance of motivational intensity in English as a foreign language context: A structural equation modeling analysis

“…For example, Hong Kong females' internal motivation for language learning is significantly higher than males' , and males' motivational intensity is lower than females' (Anderman and Midgley, 1997;Lau, 2009). Learners' motivational intensity is affected by the family environment, including household income and parental support (Wong, 2007(Wong, , 2010, teachers' support, and the participating time in learning activities (Wong, 2007; 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1020558 Lee et al, 2009). The length of learning time and differences in language competence may also lead to differences in motivational intensity (Wong, 2007).…”

“…Attitudes toward an L2 significantly predicts the motivational intensity ( Hermessi, 2022 ), and so do learners’ effort level, ideal L2 self/own, and ought to L2 self/own ( Feng and Papi, 2020 ). Changes in students’ attitudes toward English learning may determine whether they will increase their English contact in activities such as studying or job hunting, affecting their effort in L2 learning ( Wong, 2010 ). In general, motivational intensity, a critical variable in L2 learning, is highly correlated with different motivation variables.…”