Perceived Functions of Playfulness in Adult English as a Foreign Language Learners: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Influenced by the flowering of positive psychology in the field of foreign language acquisition research in recent years, the present study aimed to explore the perceived functions of playfulness, as a personality construct, among English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. To this aim, an initial sample of 38 EFL learners were selected randomly from the private language institutes of Mashhad, the second largest city in Iran. They were interviewed about any perceived functions of playfulness in the EFL learning context. A qualitative content analysis of the collected data led to the extraction of four categories: Fun and laughter, creativity, mastery orientation, and cultivating relationships. A further in-depth analysis of the categories and comparison with the functions of adult playfulness in psychology (primarily Proyer’s 2014 and 2017 works of research) revealed that these four categories can be subsumed under two of the four structural components of adult playfulness; namely, other-directed playfulness and intellectual playfulness. The ability of EFL learners to turn language learning situations, tasks, and environment into enjoyable ones via their playfulness can have implications for the quality of their interpersonal interactions in class and eventually their language proficiency. The findings of this study can pave the way for the translation of the adult playfulness construct from developmental and personality psychology and family relations into the second language acquisition (SLA) domain and its conceptualization in future research in this domain.

Enjoymeter for Exploring Micro-Scale Changes in Foreign Language Enjoyment

“…On the other hand, given the feedback sensitive nature of dynamic systems, language teachers can nurture moments of high enjoyment for their learners through emotional scaffolding, building rapport, and group work in which they can feel a sense of belonging, enthusiasm, and connectedness (Dewaele and Li, 2020 ). Furthermore, enhancing playfulness among learners can enable language learners to shift from feeling negative emotions to positive ones, such as enjoyment (Barabadi et al, 2022 ). One type of playfulness is other-directed playfulness which can pave the way for positive peer enjoyment contagion, as a result, learners might experience more enjoyment in the classroom (Shao and Parkinson, 2021 ).…”

When time matters: Mechanisms of change in a mediational model of foreign language playfulness and L2 learners’ emotions using latent change score mediation model

“…When it comes to playfulness in the SLA domain, Barabadi et al (2022) investigated the playfulness among EFL learners within the context of Iran. The participants were interviewed about the perceived functions of FLP in their L2 learning.…”

“…This is because research findings show that individuals who enjoy a high level of playfulness recognize opportunities for leisure and may tend to experience less boredom in comparison to less playful counterparts (Barnett, 2012). Besides, greater playfulness in adults has been correlated with positive emotions and better emotion regulation (Barabadi et al, 2022) as well as the tendency to experience flow (Proyer, 2017). Thus, the present study is motivated by the assumption that more complete understanding of the complex, dynamic interplay of L2 emotions may improve pedagogical efforts and translate into better learning outcomes.…”

Testing associations between language use in descriptions of playfulness and age, gender, and self-reported playfulness in German-speaking adults

“…Our aim was to expand the knowledge on how playfulness is reflected in language by asking participants to provide descriptions of what they understand as playfulness and using LIWC for text analysis. Prior research has shown that people have a comparatively differentiated understanding of what playfulness is: Proyer (2014b) asked 299 participants to name ways to use playfulness and found that people produced between 0 and 27 functions ( M = 6.2, SD = 3.6, median = 6) that could be clustered into seven categories (e.g., wellbeing, mastery orientations, and relationships; see Barabadi et al, 2022 , for a replication). Women reported more functions than men and higher self-reported playfulness related to reporting more functions and greater diversity (i.e., responses covered many of the broader categories).…”