Exploring non-academic motivational factors which impact English language learning in Saudi Arabia : a qualitative study

Abstract

Motivation is generally believed to be one of the main determinants that assist second language (SL) and foreign language (FL) learners to initiate and sustain target language learning (Dörnyei, 1998; Cheng and Dörnyei, 2007; Guilloteaux and Dörnyei, 2008). Second language (L2) motivation has been considered under a number of philosophies and conceptualisations from various perspectives, including Gardner’s socio-educational model (Gardner, 1985), self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan, 1985; Ryan and Deci, 2000), Dörnyei’s L2 motivation model (1994), Dörnyei’s self-system model (2005), and Dörnyei’ directed motivational currents framework (Dörnyei et al., 2016). Many pioneer works have been conducted to scrutinise L2 motivation with its multifaceted nature and its impact on L2 education (Gardner and Lambert, 1972; Deci and Ryan, 1985; Gardner, 1985; Dörnyei, 1994; Oxford and Shearin, 1994; Dörnyei, 2001; Ushioda, 2008; Dörnyei and Ushioda, 2009; Dörnyei and Ushioda, 2013; Ushioda and Dörnyei, 2017). Motivation in the Saudi context has also been studied by a number of researchers (e.g. AlMaiman, 2005; Moskovsky et al., 2013; Daif-Allah and Alsamani, 2014; Khan, 2015; Al Harthy, 2017). The current study explores the non-academic factors that motivate or demotivate male Saudi university students towards English language learning. Forty-one informants participated in this study: 17 male university students, 7 imams (mosque leaders), 6 Saudi English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers, 5 Western EFL teachers, and 7 fathers. This qualitative study gained a deep understanding of these non-academic motivational and demotivational factors. The researcher employed two types of interview: formal semi-structured, and informal. Thematic analysis of the interview data was undertaken via NVivo software and Microsoft Word to find the potential themes and sub-themes. The results indicated three non-academic factors that either motivate or demotivate male university students to learn English. These were family-related, religion-related, and culture-related factors. The culture-related factor played only a demotivational role. The religion-related factor played the greatest role in motivating the students. Family-related factors played influential roles in both motivating and demotivating them. These results will contribute in the realm of motivational research not just within the Saudi context but in other contexts too.