Abstract
Individual differences researchers have recently begun to investigate the concept of emotions and their role in language learning (MacIntyre, Gregersen, & Mercer, 2016). Our aim is to report on a project exploring English majors’ feelings related to their use of foreign languages. Using a qualitative research design, participants were asked to write a paragraph in their mother tongue (Hungarian) describing their emotional experiences in connection with foreign languages and one of the four language skills. Our database comprised altogether 166 paragraphs from 31 male and 135 female students, with 43 texts on listening, 35 on speaking, 47 on reading, and 41 on writing. With the help of content analytical techniques, the texts were divided into thematic units and coded by the two authors. A framework of academically-relevant emotions (Pekrun, 2014) was used to guide our initial coding and the categories were modified where it was felt necessary. Results indicate that the two emotions most frequently experienced by English majors are predominantly related to enjoyment and language anxiety, and these emotions vary not only according to the skill involved but also depending on the context of language use (in class or outside class).
Highlights
In individual differences research, the notion of affect was mostly used to refer to phenomena judged as relevant in connection with motivation (Gardner & MacIntyre, 1993)
Advanced learners’ foreign language-related emotions across the four skills the rational working of the mind (Hebb, 1949; Mandler, 1984), going back even further in time, we find that Darwin argued as early as 1872 that emotions help animals adopt to their environment
After categorizing the type of emotions language learners recounted in connection with foreign language learning, we looked at overarching categories and tried to establish abstract links between them and contextual characteristics
Summary
The notion of affect was mostly used to refer to phenomena (e.g., attitudes) judged as relevant in connection with motivation (Gardner & MacIntyre, 1993). An important change started in the discipline of psychology: in an influential paper, Seligman and Csíkszentmihályi (2000) argued for introducing the framework of positive psychology They suggested that, instead of the focus on pathology that characterized psychology for quite a long time, there was a need to concentrate on positive experiences in people’s lives. This new approach has found its way into our field (MacIntyre & Mercer, 2014), which is well reflected by the fact that two books were published on the topic quite recently (i.e., Gabryś-Barker & Gałajda, 2016; MacIntyre, Gregersen, & Mercer, 2016). Our aim is to explore English majors’ feelings related to their use of foreign languages in and out of the classroom
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call