A Crosscultural Study on the Correlation Between Achievement Levels and Motivational Types of Values of Language Learners

Journal Title: Language Teaching Research Quarterly - Year 2017, Vol 4, Issue

Abstract

Most social scientists view values as deeply rooted, abstract motivations that guide, justify or explain attitudes, norms, opinions and actions. Values are basic orientations presumed to underlie and influence individual variation on many of the constructs that researchers from different disciplines wish to study. Since 1950s the main features of the conception of basic values implicit in the related literature are: 1. Values are beliefs, cognitive structures that are closely linked to affect. 2. Values refer to desirable goals. For example, social equality, fairness and helpfulness are all values. 3. Values transcend specific actions and situations. Obedience and honesty, for example, are values that may be relevant at work or in school, in sports, business and politics, with family, friends or strangers. 4. Values serve as standards or criteria. 5. Values are ordered by importance relative to one another. Cultures and individuals can be characterized by their systems of value priorities. Among all the scales, The Schwartz Value Survey (SVS) (1992) is currently the most widely used by social and cross-cultural psychologists for studying the individual differences in values. Schwartz derived ten, motivationally distinct, broad and basic values from three universal requirements of the human condition: needs of individuals as biological organisms, requisites of coordinated social interaction, and survival and welfare needs of groups. The ten basic values are intended to include all the core values recognized in cultures around the world (power, achievement, hedonism, stimulation, self-direction, universalism, benevolence, tradition, conformity, security). To primarily showcase whether there is a correlation between the success levels of the language learners and their motivational type of values, and secondly to explore whether this is culture specific or not, 56 language learners participated in the study and The Schwartz Values Questionnaire was administered. The study is expected to yield insight into the pursuit of the correlation between the proficiency levels of the language learners and their motivational types of values.

Authors and Affiliations

Feryal Cubukcu

Keywords

Related Articles

Emotional Intelligence: Continuing Controversies and Unresolved Issues

Emotional Intelligence (EI), defined as the “capacity to process emotional information accurately and efficiently” (Mayer & Salovey, 1995), has recently become one of the most discussed issues in different fields. There...

The Effect of Thinking Together Approach vs. Autonomous Learning Approach on Iranian EFL Learners' Writing Ability

Writing, as an influential tool for a permanent record of one’s voice, has been at the locus of EFL learning and teaching for centuries. Considering the fact that individuals’ ability to write is of the utmost importance...

Does Dictionary Use Affect Iranian EFL Learners’ Lexical Density in Writing?

An important, but rare question in EFL writing is whether learners should use dictionaries or not. The problematic state of this question prompted the present study. This study assesses research on the question of "does...

Parents’ Educational Level and Children’s English Language Proficiency

The expansion of the English Language utilization, the concept of Lingua Franca, and the English language proficiency’s role in children’s social and vocational future, make children’s learning English a vital affair for...

Technology in ELT: Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perception towards Using Fotobabble in English Classes

Teaching with technology has gained attention around the globe and internet use has become an integral part of teaching. Web- based tools are used in language classes to enhance interaction among learners and increase le...

Download PDF file
  • EP ID EP495667
  • DOI -
  • Views 231
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

Feryal Cubukcu (2017). A Crosscultural Study on the Correlation Between Achievement Levels and Motivational Types of Values of Language Learners. Language Teaching Research Quarterly, 4(), 1-11. https://europub.co.uk/articles/-A-495667