二语习得中的情感因素分析毕业论文.doc

【标题】二语习得中的情感因素分析 【作者】方爱莲 【关键词】：情感因素；二语习得；教学方式 【指导老师】邓丽君 丁健 【专业】英语 【正文】I. IntroductionIn the process of learning language, many aspects will affect how much the learners master the target language, including their cognitive and affective factors. There are individual differences for different learners, while the most important difference in all the individual differences is the affective differences. Human beings are emotional creatures, they do not take in everything they hear or see, their emotional states and other affective factors filter what they take in. According to the creative construction model of Burt and Dulay, the affective filter screens incoming language data and constitutes the first main hurdle that incoming language data must encounter before they are processed future. That is to say, the affective variations are the internal factors, so they play a very important part in language acquisition. It is, therefore, necessary to look at the affective domain for some of the most significant answers to language learning.Since 1970s, affective factors in SLA have gained much attention. Many researchers have realized that the success of second language acquisition depends on largely on language learners themselves, and their attention has shifted form teachers to learners ever since. With the development of humanistic psychology, humanists argue that the cognitive side of language learning should be combined with the affective side of language learning so as to promote mans all-round development. However the functions of affective factors are always neglected in present language learning and teaching. It is also a case in English teaching in China. Krashen, a famous expert in the field of linguistics in University of Southern California, specializing in theories of language acquisition and development, he has developed theory of second language acquisition which has influenced many Chinese English teachers in many aspects. The most influential one is the affective filter hypothesis. According to him, a number of“affective variables” play a facilitative, but non-casual role in second language acquisition. These variables include: motivation, personality and anxiety. Krashen claims that learners with high motivation, self-confidence, a good self-image, and a low level of anxiety are better equipped for success in second language acquisition. 1 In order to make the English teaching develop more smoothly and ideally, the English teachers have to focus on the affective factors in the English teaching and are hoped to take actions into practice to enhance the quality of English language teaching.II. A Brief Overview of the Affective FactorsA. The Scope of the AFAffective factors relate to the learners emotional state and attitude toward the target language. Furthermore, researchers believe that language learners all possess an affective filter which affects language acquisition. If a student possesses a high filter they are less likely to engage in language learning because of shyness, concern for grammar or other factors. Students possessing a lower affective filter will be more likely to engage in learning because they are less likely to be impeded by other factors. The affective filter is an important component of second language learning.This paper focuses on three aspects of AF-anxiety, personality and motivation. Anxiety is defined as a state which is associated with negative feelings such as uneasiness, frustration, self-doubt, apprehensive and tension. Motivation is the internal power to encourage people to take actions including will, wish, impulsion or attempt etc. A student with motivation to learn English will show the strong desire for English study. The learners personality would either cause anxiety or stimulate motivation, which depends on how to treat them.B. The Nature of the AFFehr and Russell have noted,“Everybody knows what is an emotion is, until asked to give a definition.” It is not easy to define the term though every one can feel it. Arnold and Brown consider emotion as aspects of feeling, mood or attitude which condition behavior. Damasio makes a distinction between the terms emotions(changes in body state in response to negative or positive situations) and feelings(perceptions of these changes). 2 Actually, the terms emotion, emotions and moods or feelings can be used interchangeably, although we are aware that distinctions can be drawn between them. Psychologists generally understand it as psychological experiences the learner has, such as language anxiety, reticence, motivation, or as emotional preconditions, like attitudes toward the target language and the target culture, while some educators see it as emotional expectancy, such as empathy, evaluative attitudes, and receptivity to teaching context.An emotion has the properties of a reaction: it often has an identifiable cause a stimulus or antecedent thought, it is usually a spasmodic, intense experience of short duration, and the person is typically well aware of it(i.e., emotions typically have high cognitive involvement and elaborate content). Here this paper will follow Arnold in saying that ones emotion toward a particular thing or action or situation or experience is how that thing or that action or that situation or that experience fits in with ones needs or purposes, and its resulting effect on ones emotions. In the present context, emotion will be considered broadly as aspects of emotion, feeling, mood or attitude which condition behavior.III. Affective Factors Influences on SLAA. Anxietys Influences on SLABefore analyzing the influences of the anxiety, its necessary for us to learn about the anxiety studies. There are three perspectives of anxiety studies such as trait anxiety, state anxiety and situation specific anxieties. Trait anxiety may be defined as an individuals likelihood of becoming anxious in any situation. A person with high trait anxiety would be highly likely to become apprehensive in a number of different situations. It is perhaps best viewed as an aspect of personality. Trait anxiety has been shown to impair cognitive functioning, to disrupt memory, to lead to avoidance behaviors, and to have several other effects on second language learning. State anxiety is a blend of the trait and situational approaches. State anxiety can be defined as apprehension that is experienced at a particular moment in time as a response to a definite situation, for example, prior to taking examinations. Thus individuals who are prone to experience anxiety in general(i.e., who have high levels of trait anxiety) show greater elevations of state anxiety in stressful situations. It can generate anxiety on second language learning either. The study of situational anxiety has received considerable attention in SLA research. Situation specific constructs can be seen as trait anxiety measures limited to a given context. Respondents are tested for their anxiety reactions in a well-defined situation such as public speaking, writing examinations, performing math, or participating in second language class. It has been carried out by means of co-relational studies involving measures of anxiety and learning and through diary studies. In both cases, the research indicates that learners frequently experience“language anxiety”, a type of situation-specific anxiety associated with attempts to learn the second language and communicate in it.The brief description of the three research traditions serves to clarify the kinds of language anxiety and correlation among trait anxiety, state anxiety and situational anxiety to help us understand more clearly about the influences of language anxiety. As mentioned above, it reveals that foreign language anxiety or second language anxiety prohibits language acquisition and production; and that the effects of language anxiety may be pervasive. Whereas much of the research into the role of anxiety in language learning has used written-used measures, such as course grades, Macintyre and Gardner employed Tobias model to examine some of the more specific cognitive process that may be involved in language acquisition in terms of a three-stage model of learning: Input, Processing, and Output. These stages were represented in a set of nine tasks that were employed to isolate and measure the language acquisition stages. A new anxiety scale consisted of three scales was also developed to measure anxiety at each of the stages. Significance correlations are obtained between the stage-specific anxiety tasks(e.g., input anxiety with input tasks; processing anxiety with processing tasks; output anxiety with output tasks). This finding suggests that the effects of language anxiety may be not only pervasive but also subtle.B. Personalitys Influences on SLASecond language acquisition is defined as the learning and adopting of a language that is not your native language. Studies have shown that extraverts(or unreserved and outgoing people) acquire a second language better than introverts(or shy people).One particular study done by Naiman reflected this point. The subjects were 72 Canadian high school students from grades 8, 10 and 12 who were studying French as a second language. Naiman gave them all questionnaires to establish their psychological profiles, which also included a French listening test and imitation test. He found that approximately 70% of the students with the higher grades(B or higher) would consider themselves extroverts.Extroverts will be willing to try to communicate even if they are not sure they will succeed. Two scientists, Kinginger and Farrell, conducted interviews with U.S. students after their study abroad program in France in 2003. They found that many of the students would avoid interaction with the native speakers at all costs, while others jumped at the opportunity to speak the language. 3 Those who avoided interaction were typically quiet, reserved people, or introverts.Logically, fear will cause students not to try and advance their skills, especially when they feel they are under pressure. Just the lack of practice will make introverts less likely to fully acquire the second language.C. Motivations Influences on SLA1. Internal Motivation VariablesInternal motivation variables usually refer to learners expectancies, attitude, strategy and interest.Expectancy means that learners have perceived self-efficacy. They know what will happen in future. They will do something according to their ability. If they will finish a thing, they must compare their ability with the difficulty level of the task. Learners expectation on success is an important motivation factor. Bandura defined the self-efficacy as“peoples judgments of their capabilities to organize and execute courses of action required to attain designated types of performances”. 4 So, the self-efficacy is main and important. An efficacious learner fosters interest and positive engagement in cognitive activities. If the learners have high efficacy, they must let themselves meet challenging goals and maintain strong commitment. Even if they are failing, they dont lose heart. If learners with a low sense of efficacy want to deal with difficult tasks, they cant achieve for they dont have encouragement and confidence to do it. Therefore, the higher the learners expectancy, the better he performs his cognitive capabilities.Researchers suggest that learners attitudes are related to motivation by serving as supports of learners overall orientation. It is true that learners with a positive attitude and interest in foreign language learning can promote learning motivation. If students have positive attitudes towards learning English, they will show great interest in English and hold strong learning motivation. If students have favorable attitudes towards English-speaking people, they will be interested in English and have intrinsic motivation to learning English. Finally they will succeed in learning English. On the other hand, if students attitudes are negative, motivational intensity will be relatively weak. Therefore, teachers should develop students interest in English and their positive attitudes towards native speakers of English in order to enhance their learning motivation.It is not enough that learners only have expectancy on success and his positive values on learning tasks. They do not guarantee intrinsically motivated further learning. If the learner values the learning task, but he lacks strategies to complete it, his high self-efficacy beliefs wont lead to competent performance. Learners strategies include three ways. They are meta-cognitive strategies, cognitive strategies and social strategies. The first strategies involve planning and thinking about learning. Second one involves conscious ways of tackling learning. The last strategies refer to learning by interacting with others.It seems that appropriate strategy use can lead to an enhanced self-perception of language proficiency, and in turn, increase the motivational beliefs. If learners can use appropriate strategy in communication, they must get more useful things. It also stimulates their motivation. On the contrary, if learners use poor strategies, they will be far from their ultimate goal.At last, interest also plays an important part in students language learning. Deci and Ryan hold that interest plays“an important direct role in intrinsically motivated behavior in that people naturally approach activities that attract them”. 5 Interest is a manifestation of inborn capabilities, self-assessment as well as personal accomplishments. It is a very important factor in intrinsic motivation. If a learner isnt interested in it, even if there have expectancy, positive attitude and good strategies, he also doesnt do it. Like learning, even the teacher is the best teacher, he doesnt inspire students interest, he also isnt known as a good teacher.2. External Motivation VariablesConcerning external motivation variables, this thesis mainly consider three aspects: teaching materials, teaching methodology as well as learning environment.The teaching materials are an important part in external motivation. No matter a language teacher adopts any teaching methods, the materials used in the process of language learning are always vital. There are three principles in selecting teaching materials: readability(the level of difficulty for learners), suitability(the content of the material should be interesting and authentic) and exploitability(learners study the skills and strategies through the exploitation of the material). Therefore, the teaching materials should be readable, reliable and easy to inspire students interest, such as the textbooks. A readable, reliable and interesting textbook must attract students attention and enhance the motivation for learning. In contrast, a poor, dull