CHAPTER EIGHT Effect of Intercultural Contact on L2 motivation: A Comparative Study (Scott Aubrey, Kwansei Gakuin University, & Andrew G. P. Nowlan, Kwansei Gakuin University) Abstract This comparative study reports on the effect of direct intercultural contact on Japanese university students’ attitudes towards the international community and motivation to learn English in two very different contexts: an international university and a non-international university. Structural equation modeling and the analysis of audio diaries were used in a mixed-method approach. 282 first-year Japanese university learners participated in the questionnaire component of the study, and 20 students kept diaries documenting their daily contact experiences with international students during their first semester at university. Based on questionnaire data, the resulting structural model for the international university indicates that Intercultural Contact indirectly affects students’ Motivated Learning Behavior through the attitudinal variable International Posture. The model also reveals that although Intercultural Contact at the international university directly affects students’ obligation towards others to learn English, this obligation does not significantly impact their Motivated Learning Behavior. The model for the non-international university indicates that Intercultural Contact does not significantly impact any of the measured variables. The qualitative data supports these conclusions and reveals that the different attitudinal and motivational effects from contact in these two environments are due to the considerable differences in quality and quantity of contact occurring at these two institutions.
Posted on: Tue, 06 Aug 2013 13:36:41 +0000
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