Motivation and Demotivation in Foreign Language Learning: A Study of French Language Learners in Malaysia

This research investigates the motivating and demotivating factors experienced by university students during foreign language acquisition. The questionnaire was given to 126 students learning French in Malaysia. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was adapted from Gardner’s (2001) motivation framework and Horwitz et al.’s (1986) anxiety framework to measure motivating and demotivating factors. The survey consisted of three sections. Section A contained the demographic profile with three items. Section B focuses on motivating factors with 11 items, and Section C has 33 items directed at demotivating factors. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, and Pearson correlation. The result indicates a high level of motivation toward learning French (M = 4.40, SD = 0.61) and also a high tendency towards peer assistance when facing difficulties (M = 4.49, SD = 0.59). However, several anxiety-related factors were identified as sources of demotivation, such as communication apprehension, fear of negative evaluation and, test anxiety. Students become nervous when they are asked questions without being prepared in advance (M = 3.83, SD = 0.97). The correlation analysis indicated no significant association between motivating and demotivating factors, r(124) = -.002, p = .979. These results indicate that motivation and demotivation may exist at the same time as distinct variables in foreign language acquisition.

motivating factors, demotivating factors, French language, foreign language acquisition, correlation

1. Agustina, E. T., Wahyudin, A. Y., & Pratiwi, A. A. (2021). The students’ motivation and academic achievement at tertiary level: A correlational study. Journal of Arts and Education, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.33365/jae.v1i1.33 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Alico, J. C. (2016). Writing anxiety and language learning motivation: Examining causes, indicators, and relationship. Communication and Linguistics Studies, 2(1), 6–12. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20160201.12 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Amoah, S., & Yeboah, J. (2021). The speaking difficulties of Chinese EFL learners and their motivation towards speaking the English language. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 17(1), 56–69. https://doi.org/10.52462/jlls.4 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Awang, F. F. (2023). Approach to learning French as a third language in Malaysia through the auditory learning method. E-Jurnal Bahasa dan Linguistik (e-JBL), 5(1), 51–62. https://doi.org/10.53840/ejbl.v5i1.141 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Bonta, E. (2019). Demotivation-triggering factors in learning and using a foreign language: An empirical study. Journal of Innovation in Psychology, Education and Didactics, 23(2), 177–198. https://jiped.ub.ro/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/JIPED_23_2_2019_4.pdf [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Chong, M. Y. C., Renandya, W. A., & Ng, Q. R. (2019). Demotivation in L2 classrooms: Teacher and learner factors. LEARN Journal: Language Education and Acquisition Research Network, 12(2), 64–75. https://so04.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/LEARN/article/view/205071/142770 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203771587 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Dörnyei, Z. (1998). Motivation in second and foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 31, 117–135. https://doi.org/10.1017/s026144480001315X [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Teaching and researching motivation. Pearson. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Dörnyei, Z., & Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and researching motivation (2nd ed.). Longman. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Gardner, R. C. (1985). Social psychology and second language learning: The role of attitudes and motivation. Edward Arnold. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Gardner, R. C. (2001). Integrative motivation and second language acquisition. In Z. Dörnyei & R. Schmidt (Eds.), Motivation and second language acquisition (pp. 1–19). University of Hawaii Press. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Gao, L., & Liu, H. (2022). Revisiting students’ foreign language learning demotivation: From concepts to themes. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1030634. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1030634 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

14. Getie, A. S., & Popescu, M. (2020). Factors affecting the attitudes of students towards learning English as a foreign language. Cogent Education, 7(1) 1738184. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2020.1738184 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

15. Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture's consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations (2nd ed.). Sage Publications. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

16. Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. A. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. Modern Language Journal, 70(2), 125–132. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.1986.tb05256.x [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

17. Jackson, S. L. (2015). Research methods and statistics: A critical thinking approach (5th ed.). Cengage Learning. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

18. Kikuchi, K. (2019). Motivation and demotivation over two years: A case study of English language learners in Japan. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 9(1), 157–175. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2019.9.1.7 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

19. Lewis, M. (1999). How to study foreign languages. Macmillan Education UK. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

20. Liu, C. (2020). Motivators for demotivators affecting EFL learners in Chinese secondary vocational school. English Language Teaching, 13(4), 41–51. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v13n4p41 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

21. Luo, Z., Subramaniam, G., & O’Steen, B. (2020). Will anxiety boost motivation? The relationship between anxiety and motivation in foreign language learning. Malaysian Journal of ELT Research, 17(1). https://meltajournals.com/index.php/majer/article/view/559/542 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

22. Point, R. G., Ng, C.-C., & Ting, S.-H. (2021). Perceptions of students learning French as a foreign language in Malaysia. Trends in Undergraduate Research, 4(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.33736/tur.3094.2021 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

23. Rahmat, N. H. (2019). Cycle of Fear in Learning: The Case for Three Language Skills. American Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 4(1), 151–162. https://doi.org/10.20448/801.41.151.162 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

24. Rahmat, N. H. (2022). Motives to learn English as a foreign language: An analysis from Vroom’s theory. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 12(4), 1539–1548. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v12-i4/13150 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

25. Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54–67. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1020 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

26. Vakilifard, A., Ebadi, S., Zamani, M., & Sadeghi, B. (2020). Investigating demotivating factors in foreign language learners: The case of non-Iranian Persian language learners. Cogent Education, 7(1), 1690232. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2019.1690232 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

27. Wang, Z., Shakeshaft, N., Schofield, K., & Malanchini, M. (2018). Anxiety is not enough to drive me away: A latent profile analysis on math anxiety and math motivation. PLOS ONE, 13(2), e0192072. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0192072 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

28. Zhang, X., Dai, S., & Ardasheva, Y. (2020). Contributions of (de)motivation, engagement, and anxiety to English listening and speaking. Learning and Individual Differences, 79, 101856. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2020.101856 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

29. Zheng, Y., Lu, Y., & Li, J. (2023). Motivating and demotivating factors for Chinese as a foreign language learners in a British CLIL program. Foreign Language Annals, 56(3), 720–739. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12681 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

30. Zolkapli, R. B. M., Kenali, S. F. M., Hadi, N. F. A., Basiron, M. K., Iqbal, M., Latif, M. N. L. A., & Rahmat, N.H. (2023). Exploring motivation and demotivation factors for learning communication skills. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 13(7), 1501–1520. http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v13-i7/17871 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• Evaluating the Impacts of Mind Mapping Strategy on Developing EFL Students’ Critical Reading Skills
• Significance of Reading Instructions for Language Improvement in Children with Down Syndrome
• Prenasalised Consonants in Liangmai
• Metadiscourse Matters: Definitions, Models, and Advantages for ESL/ EFL Writing
• Blank Minds and Stuck Voices: Understanding and Addressing Cognitive Anxiety in High-Stakes ESL Speaking Tests