What Motivates Saudi EFL Learners To Learn English?

Abstract

This research explores Dörnyei’s (2005, 2009) L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS). It further provides insights into the source of the imagined self-guides that learners have, as well as how these self-guides develop over time. 21 male EFL learners at a Saudi University were interviewed for the purposes of this investigation. The results indicate that career related goals and the desire to communicate with native speakers were reported by Saudi EFL learners as prominent reasons for learning English. The results confirmed that the imagination played a significant role in L2 learning. It also plays a role in the formation process of the learners’ future selves (Dörnyei, 2009). The source of the imaginations reported by the EFL learners in the current study was related to having role models whether in the EFL learners’ lives, e.g. competent English-speaking teachers or family members, or distant admired figures and characters in books and movies whom the learners admire and wish to be like in the future.