Motivation, Language Identity and the L2 Self

Dornyei (psycholinguistics, U. of Nottingham, UK) and Ushioda (ELT and applied linguistics, U. of Warwick, UK) compile 18 articles on language learning motivation written by an international group of scholars of English, psychology, linguistics, education, and other fields. They particularly consider the role of motivation in the process of second language acquisition (L2) within the contexts of globalization and contemporary ideas of self and identity. The volume first describes the L2 Motivational Self System, then examines learners from different countries and levels of education within this context, as well as perspectives relating to the model that consider the development of a measurement scale to assess selves, the role of imaginative capacity and visual learning, how aspects of ethnolinguistic affiliation and identity are realized through the system, and alternatives to the model. Other chapters consider teacher motivation and development and connect the model to other major theoretical frameworks and constructs, such as activity and autonomy theories, and Bourdieuan habitus. The book is meant for teachers, researchers, undergraduates, and graduate students. Distributed in the US by UTP Distribution. Annotation c2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Zoltan Dornyei is Professor of Psycholinguistics in the School of English Studies, University of Nottingham. He has published widely on various aspects of individual differences and second language acquisition and is the author of several books including The Psychology of the Language Learner (2005, Lawrence Erlbaum), Motivation, Language Attitudes and Globalisation: A Hungarian Perspective (2006, Multilingual Matters, co-authored with Kata Csizer and Nora Nemeth), Research Methods in Applied Linguistics (2007, Oxford University Press) and The Psychology of Second Language Acquisition (2009, Oxford University Press).
Ema Ushioda is an Associate Professor in ELT and Applied Linguistics at the Centre for Applied Linguistics, University of Warwick where she teaches MA courses and coordinates the Doctorate in Education. Her research interests include language motivation, autonomy, sociocultural theory and teacher development. Her publications include Learner Autonomy 5: The Role of Motivation (1996, Authentik), Towards Greater Learner Autonomy in the Foreign Language Classroom (2002, Authentik, co-authored with David Little and Jennifer Ridley) and Learner Autonomy in the Foreign Language Classroom: Teacher, Learner, Curriculum and Assessment (2003, Authentik, co-edited with David Little and Jennifer Ridley).