Exploring EFL Teachers’ Understandings of Language Learning Psychology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33541/jet.v12i1.7881Keywords:
teaching contexts , EFL teachers, Language learning psychologyAbstract
Despite having become a key field in applied linguistics, language learning psychology (LLP) research is found to emphasize more on learners rather than teachers. 30 EFL teachers reported on their understandings on LLP within the EFL contexts in this study. How the teachers working in three different schools in Thailand conceptualize and apply five LLP constructs, namely 1) motivation, 2) willingness to communicate, 3) emotion, 4) self-concept, and 5) group dynamics in their classrooms were explored with a mixed-methods design including a survey and interviews. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analyses were undertaken to find out any relationships among these five LLP constructs, whereas qualitative findings were investigated thematically. It was found that motivation, willingness to communicate, and emotion appeared vital in the teachers’ classroom experiences. The teachers also described their role in creating the emotional side of the classroom and in creating a supportive and positive learning environment. The findings shed light on teacher psychology and professional wellness and the role of teaching practices that take into account emotional responses.
References
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman.
Benesch, S. (2012). Considering emotions in critical English language teaching: Theories and praxis. Routledge.
Borg, S. (2006). Teacher cognition and language education: Research and practice. Continuum.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Day, C., & Gu, Q. (2010). The new lives of teachers. Routledge.
Dewaele, J.-M. (2015). On emotions in foreign language learning and use. The LanguageTeacher, 39(3), 13–15.
Dörnyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second language acquisition. Lawrence Erlbaum.
Dörnyei, Z., & Murphey, T. (2003). Group dynamics in the language classroom. Cambridge University Press.
Dörnyei, Z., & Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and researching motivation (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Gkonou, C., & Mercer, S. (2017). Understanding emotional and social intelligence among
English language teachers. British Council ELT Research Papers, 17. British Council.
Gkonou, C., Dewaele, J.-M., & King, J. (Eds.). (2020). The emotional rollercoaster of language teaching. Multilingual Matters.
Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional intelligence. Bantam Books.
Guilloteaux, M. J., & Dörnyei, Z. (2008). Motivating language learners: A classroom-oriented investigation of the effects of motivational strategies on student motivation. TESOL Quarterly, 42(1), 55–77. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1545-7249.2008.tb00207.x
Hiver, P., & Al-Hoorie, A. H. (2020). Research methods for complexity theory in applied
linguistics. Multilingual Matters.
Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The
Modern Language Journal, 70(2), 125–132. https://doi.org/10.2307/327317
Imai, Y. (2010). Emotions in SLA: New insights from collaborative learning. The Modern
Language Journal, 94(2), 278–292. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2010.01021.x
Jennings, P. A., & Greenberg, M. T. (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and
emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 491–525. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654308325693
MacIntyre, P. D., & Gregersen, T. (2012). Emotions that facilitate language learning: The
positive-broadening power of the imagination. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 2(2), 193–213.
Mercer, S. (2011). Towards an understanding of language learner self-concept. Springer.
Mercer, S., Ryan, S., & Williams, M. (Eds.). (2012). Psychology for language learning: Insights from research, theory and practice. Palgrave Macmillan.
Mercer, S., & Gregersen, T. (2020). Teacher wellbeing. Oxford University Press.
Mercer, S., & Kostoulas, A. (Eds.). (2018). Language teacher psychology. Multilingual Matters.
Norton, B. (2013). Identity and language learning: Extending the conversation (2nd ed.). Multilingual Matters.
Oxford, R. L. (2017). Teaching and researching language learning strategies: Self-regulation in context (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.5
Stevick, E. W. (1980). Teaching languages: A way and ways. Newbury House.
Ushioda, E. (2009). A person-in-context relational view of emergent motivation, self and identity. In Z. Dörnyei & E. Ushioda (Eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self (pp. 215–228). Multilingual Matters.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 JET (Journal of English Teaching)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyrights for articles published in JET are retained by the authors, with first publication rights granted to the journal. The journal/publisher is not responsible for subsequent uses of the work. It is the author's responsibility to bring an infringement action if so desired by the author.
