Thai and Serbian Student L2 Motivational Selves: A Contrastive Study

Abstract

Applying L2 Motivational Self-System, the aim of this paper is to investigate how Thai and Serbian students construct their L2 motivational self-systems. A total of 543 students from Thailand and Serbia completed an 18-item questionnaire aimed at sampling relevant motivational factors. Although the students from both universities reported medium levels of motivated behaviour and a strong influence of their L2 learning experience, the most influential factors in the construction of self-systems were fundamentally different. While Serbian students construct their motivational self-systems on the basis of their ideal L2 selves, Thai students shape their motivational self-systems on the basis of ought-to L2 self. This difference points to the overall teaching approaches adopted in the investigated settings, where in Serbia learning experience is guided by the communicative approach to language teaching, while the Thai learning experience rests on a teacher-centred approach shaped by the collectivist cultural orientation.