Cover not available

Article published In: Language, Interaction and Acquisition
Vol. 8:2 (2017) ► pp.273–287

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
authorization required

Military L2 immersion

Language learning motivations among Finnish-speaking conscripts in a Swedish language garrison

 | University of Helsinki
 | University of Maryland, College Park
 | University of Helsinki
Published online: 2 March 2018
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/lia.16002.vin
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to examine some of the motivations and longitudinal consequences of military service in L2 Swedish for L1 Finnish conscripts in Finland’s only Swedish language garrison. Cross-sectional data (N = 42), analyzed with Bayesian path analysis, indicates that promotional instrumentality enhanced participants’ L2 ideal selves, but integrative orientation did not. The L2 ideal self predicts L2 learning intentions in the army, but only among learners with low L2 proficiency at the beginning of military service. Longitudinal data (N = 17), analyzed with a Bayesian model selection procedure, shows that after six months in the army, participants reported higher levels of L2 proficiency, lower levels of L2 use anxiety and more positive attitudes towards L2 speakers than at the beginning of military service.
Résumé
L’objet de cet article est d’analyser certaines des motivations qui conduisent à effectuer son service militaire en suédois L2 dans l’unique garnison de langue suédoise en Finlande parmi des conscrits locuteurs du Finnois L1, et les conséquences de ce choix sur le plan longitudinal. Les données transversales (N = 42), analysées suivant une démarche bayésienne, montrent que l’instrumentalité promotionnelle renforce le moi idéal en L2 des participants alors que la motivation intégrative ne produit pas un tel effet. Le moi idéal en L2 permet de prévoir des efforts d’apprentissage de la L2 à l’armée, mais cela exclusivement pour ceux dont les compétences étaient faibles en L2 au début de leur service militaire. Les données longitudinales (N = 17), analysées à l’aide d’une procédure de sélection bayésienne, montrent qu’après six mois à l’armée, les participants ont déclaré des niveaux supérieurs de compétence en L2, des niveaux plus faibles d’anxiété dans l’emploi des L2, et des attitudes plus positives à l’égard des locuteurs de L2, par rapport au début de leur service militaire.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Study 1: The cross-sectional study
    • 2.1Theoretical background
    • 2.2Method
      • 2.2.1Participants
      • 2.2.2Measures
      • 2.2.3Analysis
    • 2.4Results
    • 2.5Discussion
  • 3.Study 2: The longitudinal study
    • 3.1Theoretical background
    • 3.2Method
      • 3.2.1Participants
      • 3.2.2Measures
      • 3.2.3Analysis
    • 3.3Results
    • 3.4Discussion
  • 4.General discussion
  • Acknowledgements
  • References
References (32)
References
Allport, G. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Cambridge, MA: Addison-Wesley.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Busse, V. (2013). How do students of German perceive feedback practices at university? A motivational exploration. Journal of Second Language Writing, 22(4), 406–424. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Brophy, I. N. (1946). The luxury of anti-Negro prejudice. Public Opinion Quarterly, 91, 456–466. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Clément, R., & S. C. Baker. (2001). Measuring social aspects of L2 acquisition and use: Scale characteristics and administration. Ottawa: University of Ottawa, School of Psychology.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Clément, R., Baker, S. C., & MacIntyre, P. D. (2003). Willingness to communicate in a second language: The effects of context norms, and vitality. Journal of Language And Social Psychology, 22(2), 190–209. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Depaoli, S., & van de Schoot, R. (2017). Improving transparency and replication in Bayesian statistics: The WAMBS-Checklist. Psychological methods, 22(2), 240–261. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z. (2009). The L2 motivational self system. In Dörnyei, Z. & Ushioda, E. (Eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self (pp. 9–42). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z., & Chan, L. (2013). Motivation and vision: An analysis of future L2 self images, sensory styles, and imagery capacity across two target languages. Language Learning, 63(3), 437–462. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gardner, R. C. (2010). Motivation and second language acquisition: The socio-educational model. Berne: Peter Lang.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gelman, A., Carlin, J. B., Stern, H. S., & Rubin, D. B. (2004). Bayesian data analysis (2nd ed.). London: Chapman & Hall.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gelman, A., & Rubin, D. B. (1992). Inference from iterative simulation using multiple sequences. Statistical Science, 71, 457–511. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Giles, H., Bourhis, R. Y., & Taylor, D. M. (1977). Towards a theory of language in ethnic group relations. In H. Giles (Ed.), Language, ethnicity and intergroup relations (pp. 307-348). New York, NY: Academic Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hoijtink, H. (2011). Informative hypotheses: Theory and practice for behavioral and social scientists. London: CRC Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Holm, G., Londen, M., & Mansikka, J. E. (2015). Interpreting visual (and verbal) data: Teenagers’ views on belonging to a language minority group in Finland. In P. Smeyers, D. Bridges, N. C. Burbules, & M. Griffiths (Eds.). International handbook of interpretation in educational research: Part one (pp. 753–782). Dordrecht: Springer. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kass, R. E., & Raftery, A. E. (1995). Bayes factors. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 901, 773–795. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kephart, W. M. (1957). Racial factors and urban law enforcement. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lamb, M. (2012). A self system perspective on young adolescents’ motivation to learn English in urban and rural settings. Language Learning, 62(4), 997–1023. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lasagabaster, D. (2016). The relationship between motivation, gender, L1 and possible selves in English-medium instruction. International Journal of Multilingualism, 13(3), 315–332. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lee, S. -Y., & Song, X. -Y. (2004). Evaluation of the Bayesian and maximum likelihood approaches in analyzing structural equation models with small sample sizes. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 391, 653–686. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Muthén, L., & Muthén, B. (1998–2015). Mplus user’s guide (Seventh ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Papi, M., & Teimouri, Y. (2012). Dynamics of selves and motivation: A cross‐sectional study in the EFL context of Iran. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 22(3), 287–309. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pettigrew, T. F., & Tropp, L. R. (2006). A meta-analytical test of the intergroup contact theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 901, 751–783. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Puolustusvoimat (2013, November 9) Nylands brigad utbildar för kusten och skärgården. [Nylands Brigad trains for the coast and the archipelago] Retrieved from <[URL]>
Pöyhönen, S., & Saarinen, T. (2014). Constructions of bilingualism in Finnish Government programs and a newspaper discussion site debate. Current Issues in Language Planning, (ahead-of-print), 1–17.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Rakić, T., Steffens, M. C., & Mummendey, A. (2011). Blinded by the accent! The minor role of looks in ethnic categorization. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100(1), 16–29. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ryan, S. (2009). Self and identity in L2 motivation in Japan: The ideal L2 self and Japanese learners of English. In Z. Dörnyei & E. Ushioda (Eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self (pp. 120–143). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Saari, Mirja. (2012). The development of Finnish into a national language. In M. Hüning, U. Vogl, & O. Moliner (Eds.), Standard languages and multilingualism in European history (pp. 179–204). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Sampasivam, S., & Clément, R. (2014). The dynamics of second language confidence: Perspective and interaction. In S. Mercer, & M. Williams (Eds.), Multiple perspectives on the self in SLA (pp. 23–40). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Stephan, C. W., & Stephan, W. G. (1992). Reducing intercultural anxiety through intercultural contact. International Journal of Intercultural Relations 161, 89–106. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Utbildningsstyrelsen (2014). Elevernas språkbakgrund i årskurs 1–6 i de svenskspråkiga skolorna år 2013 [The linguistic background of pupils in grades 1–6 of the Swedish-speaking schools in 2013]. Helsingfors: Utbildningsstyrelsen.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
van de Schoot, R., Kaplan, D., Denissen, J., Asendorpf, J. B., Neyer, F. J., & Aken, M. A. (2014). A gentle introduction to Bayesian analysis: Applications to developmental research. Child development, 85(3), 842–860. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Yle (2013, February 22). Finska studerande en tillgång för Åbo Akademi [Finnish-speaking students as an asset for Åbo Academy University]. Retrieved from <[URL]>
Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue