A descriptive study on the literature of the L2 motivational self-system and its practical implications

A descriptive study on the literature of the L2 motivational self-system

Abstract

Dörnyei’s (2005, 2009) L2 Motivational Self System has been widely researched in the last few decades. This review focuses on growing interest in the L2MSS and its practical implications by examining the most important books, chapters within books, edited books, major validation and interventions studies grounded on this model. A scanning research design has been adopted in the present study and researchers have accessed the materials through searching the Internet for certain key words related to the L2MSS and borrowing books from various Turkish university libraries. A total of four books, chapters within books and edited books, eight validation studies, and seven intervention studies have been reviewed in this descriptive study to analyze the impact of the L2MSS on the field of second language motivation research. As the resources reviewed in this article have revealed, the relationship between language learning and the concept of self can be explored through a plethora of research designs that address various research questions. It seems that the L2MSS and its pedagogical programs will continue to attract the attention of both academics and instructors who will focus on new areas of research that remain unexamined today.