|  e-ISSN: 2757-5772

Original article | Innovational Research in ELT 2023, Vol. 4(1) 1-13

Foreign Language Enjoyment among Turkish EFL Learners

Selami Aydın & Ferdane Denkci Akkaş

pp. 1 - 13   |  DOI: https://doi.org/10.29329/irelt.2023.558.1   |  Manu. Number: MANU-2304-01-0001.R1

Published online: June 19, 2023  |   Number of Views: 123  |  Number of Download: 372


Abstract

Positive emotions are vital in learning English as a foreign language (EFL). However, while research on EFL learning mainly focuses on negative emotions, there has been growing interest in positive emotions under an interdisciplinary perspective with Positive Psychology. On the other hand, current research results are conflicting in terms of foreign language enjoyment (FLE), depending on the Broaden-and-Build Theory and the Control-Value Theory. Moreover, research is not conclusive in terms of the levels of FLE regarding gender, age, and proficiency in the target language. This study aims to find the levels of FLE among Turkish EFL learners and the differences between the levels of FLE in accordance with the variables of age, gender, and proficiency in the target language. A background questionnaire and the Foreign Language Learning Enjoyment Scale (FLLES) were administered to 609 EFL learners enrolled at state high schools, language preparatory schools, and universities. The results showed that EFL learners experience a high level of FLE. It was also concluded that while the level of FLE significantly differs in accordance with EFL learners’ age and proficiency levels, gender does not seem to be a significant variable that considerably relates to FLE.

Keywords: English as a foreign language, foreign language enjoyment, descriptive research


How to Cite this Article?

APA 6th edition
Aydin, S. & Akkas, F.D. (2023). Foreign Language Enjoyment among Turkish EFL Learners . Innovational Research in ELT, 4(1), 1-13. doi: 10.29329/irelt.2023.558.1

Harvard
Aydin, S. and Akkas, F. (2023). Foreign Language Enjoyment among Turkish EFL Learners . Innovational Research in ELT, 4(1), pp. 1-13.

Chicago 16th edition
Aydin, Selami and Ferdane Denkci Akkas (2023). "Foreign Language Enjoyment among Turkish EFL Learners ". Innovational Research in ELT 4 (1):1-13. doi:10.29329/irelt.2023.558.1.

References

    Akkaş, F., Tekin, I., & Aydin, S. (2022). A correlational study on enjoyment and anxiety in a foreign language learning context. International LET-IN 2022 Conference, 306–314

    Aydın, S., Tekin, I., & Denkci Akkaş, F. (2023). Construction and validation of the Foreign Language Learning Enjoyment Scale. Unpublished Research Paper.

    Boudreau, C., MacIntyre, P., & Dewaele, J. (2018). Enjoyment and anxiety in second language communication: An idiodynamic approach. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 8(1), 149–170. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2018.8.1.7

    De Smet, A., Mettewie, L., Galand, B., Hiligsmann, P., & Van Mensel, L. (2018). Classroom anxiety and enjoyment in CLIL and non-CLIL: Does the target language matter? Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 8(1), 47-71.

    Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Hedonia, eudaimonia, and well-being: An introduction. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9018-1

    Dewaele, J. (2015). On emotions in foreign language learning and use. The Language Teacher, 39(3), 13-15.

    Dewaele, J., Albakistani, A., & Ahmed, I. (2022). Levels of foreign language enjoyment, anxiety and boredom in emergency remote teaching and in in-person classes. The Language Learning Journal, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2022.2110607

    Dewaele, J., Chen, X., Padilla, A. M., & Lake, J. (2019). The flowering of positive psychology in foreign language teaching and acquisition research. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02128

    Dewaele, J., & Dewaele, L. (2020). Are foreign language learners’ enjoyment and anxiety specific to the teacher? An investigation into the dynamics of learners’ classroom emotions. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 10(1), 45-65. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2020.10.1.3

    Dewaele, J., & MacIntyre, P. (2016). Foreign language enjoyment and foreign language classroom anxiety: The right and left feet of the language learner. In T. Gregersen, P. MacIntyre, & S. Mercer (Eds.), Positive Psychology in SLA (pp. 215-236). Multilingual Matters. https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783095360-010

    Dewaele, J., MacIntyre, P., Boudreau, C., & Dewaele, L. (2016). Do girls have all the fun? Anxiety and enjoyment in the foreign language classroom. Theory and Practice of Second Language Acquisition, 2(1), 41-63.

    Dewaele, J., & MacIntyre, P. D. (2014). The two faces of Janus? Anxiety and enjoyment in the foreign language classroom. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 4(2), 237-274. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2014.4.2.5

    Dewaele, J., Magdalena, A., & Saito, K. (2019). The effect of perception of teacher characteristics on Spanish EFL learners’ anxiety and enjoyment. Modern Language Journal, 103(2), 412-427. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12555

    Dewaele, J., Özdemir, C., Karci, D., Uysal, S., Özdemir, E., & Balta, N. (2022). How distinctive is the foreign language enjoyment and foreign language classroom anxiety of Kazakh learners of Turkish? Applied Linguistics Review, 13(2), 243–265. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2019-0021

    Dewaele, J., & Proietti Ergün, A. (2020). How different are the relations between enjoyment, anxiety, attitudes/motivation and course marks in pupils’ Italian and English as foreign languages? Journal of the European Second Language Association, 4(1), 45. https://doi.org/10.22599/jesla.65

    Dewaele, J., Witney, J., Saito, K., & Dewaele, L. (2018). Foreign language enjoyment and anxiety: The effect of teacher and learner variables. Language Teaching Research, 22(6), 676-697. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168817692161

    Dörnyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second language acquisition. Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Dörnyei, Z., & Ryan, S. (2015). The psychology of the language learner revisited. Routledge.

    Elahi Shirvan, M., & Taherian, T. (2021). Longitudinal examination of university students’ foreign language enjoyment and foreign language classroom anxiety in the course of general English: latent growth curve modeling. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 24(1), 31-49. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2018.1441804

    Elahi Shirvan, M., Taherian, T., Shahnama, M., & Yazdanmehr, E. (2021). A longitudinal study of foreign language enjoyment and L2 grit: A latent growth curve modeling. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.720326

    Elahi Shirvan, M., Taherian, T., & Yazdanmehr, E. (2020). The dynamics of foreign language enjoyment: An ecological momentary assessment. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01391

    Elahi Shirvan, M., & Talebzadeh, N. (2018). Exploring the fluctuations of foreign language enjoyment in conversation: An idiodynamic perspective. Journal of Intercultural Communication Research, 47(1), 21–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/17475759.2017.1400458

    Elvira, B., & Irene, A. (2022). Foreign language enjoyment and subjective happiness in Spanish adult learners. Ournal of Language and Education, 8(2), 66-79.

    Fredrickson, B. (2004). The broaden–and–build theory of positive emotions. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences, 359(1449), 1367-1377. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2004.1512

    Gabryś-Barker, D. (2021). (Positive) affectivity in a foreign language classroom: Trainees’ response to an introductory course in positive psychology. In K. Budzińska & O. Majchrzak (Eds.), Positive psychology in second and foreign language education (pp. 187-205). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64444-4_10

    Horwitz, E., Horwitz, M., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The Modern Language Journal, 70(2), 125–132. https://doi.org/10.2307/327317

    Huang, J., & Jiang, G. (2022). The predictive effects of gender and academic discipline on foreign language enjoyment of Chinese high school students. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.802152

    Jiang, Y., & Dewaele, J. (2019). How unique is the foreign language classroom enjoyment and anxiety of Chinese EFL learners? System, 82, 13–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2019.02.017

    Kaplan, Y. (2022). A descriptive study on foreign language enjoyment of learners in foreign language classrooms. Bingöl University Journal of Social Sciences Institute, 23(1), 82–94. https://doi.org/10.29029/busbed.1033927

    Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press.

    Li, C. (2020). A Positive psychology perspective on Chinese EFL students’ trait emotional intelligence, foreign language enjoyment and EFL learning achievement. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 41(3), 246-263. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2019.1614187

    Li, C., Jiang, G., & Dewaele, J. (2018). Understanding Chinese high school students’ foreign language enjoyment: Validation of the Chinese Version of the Foreign Language Enjoyment Scale. System, 76, 183–196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.06.004

    MacIntyre, P., Gregersen, T., & Mercer, S. (2019). Setting an agenda for positive psychology in SLA: Theory, practice, and research. The Modern Language Journal, 103(1), 262-274. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12544

    Mercer, S., MacIntyre, P., Gregersen, T., & Talbot, K. (2018). No Title. Theory and Practice of Second Language Acquisition, 4(2), 11–31.

    Mierzwa, E. (2018). The relationship between foreign language enjoyment and gender among secondary grammar school students. The Journal of Education, Culture, and Society, 9(2), 117-135.

    Nemati, F., Roohani, A., & Mirzaei, A. (2020). Investigating foreign language enjoyment and public speaking class anxiety in the EFL class: A mixed methods study. Teaching English as a Second Language Quarterly, 39(1), 115-152.

    Özer, Z., & Altay, İ. (2021). Examining the level of enjoyment and anxiety among Turkish EFL students. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 17(1), 663-671.

    Piniel, K., & Albert, A. (2018). Advanced learners’ foreign language-related emotions across the four skills. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 8(1), 127-147.

    Proietti Ergün, A., & Dewaele, J. (2021). Do well-being and resilience predict the foreign language teaching enjoyment of teachers of Italian? System, 99, 102506. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2021.102506

    Proietti Ergün, A., & Ersöz Demirdağ, H. (2022). The relation between foreign language enjoyment, subjective well-being, and perceived stress in multilingual students. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2057504

    Resnik, P., & Schallmoser, C. (2019). Enjoyment as a key to success? Links between e-tandem language learning and tertiary students’ foreign language enjoyment. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 9(3), 541–564.

    Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. H. (2008). Know thyself and become what you are: A eudaimonic approach to psychological well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9(1), 13-39. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9019-0

    Seliger, H. W., & Shohamy, E. (1989). Second language research methods. Oxford University Press.

    Seligman, M. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. The Free Press.

    Seligman, M. ., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. The American Psychologist, 60(5), 410-421. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.60.5.410

    Seligman, M., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.5

    Shao, K., Yu, W., & Ji, Z. (2013). The relationship between EFL students’ emotional intelligence and writing achievement. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 7(2), 107-124. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2012.725730

    Smith, M. (2017). Introducing language and cognition: A map of the mind. Cambridge University Press.

    Su, H. (2022). Foreign language enjoyment and classroom anxiety of Chinese EFL learners with intermediate and low English proficiency. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 13(1), 101-109. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1301.12

    Yeşilçınar, S., & Erdemir, N. (2022). Are enjoyment and anxiety specific to culture? An investigation into the sources of Turkish EFL learners’ foreign language enjoyment and anxiety. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2022.2063295