Language Learning Motivations among Turkish Learners of Chinese as a Foreign Language: A Survey of Five Universities in Turkey

Abstract

Research on language learning motivations has been extensive. However, research on learners’ motivations for learning Chinese has been underexplored compared to that for learning English. The current study aimed to investigate the motivations among 256 Turkish learners of Chinese as foreign language (CFL) who studied at five universities in Turkey. Participants completed an adapted questionnaire based on Gardner’s Attitude/Motivation Test Battery (AMTB). A series of statistical analysis revealed three major findings. First, integrativeness, attitudes towards learning situation and attitudes towards learning Chinese were identified as the three most important motivational variables, followed by instrumentality, and parental encouragement. Language anxiety and passive motivation seemed to play a weaker role in Turkish CFL learners’ motivations for learning Chinese at the tertiary level. Second, the results also show that females exhibited higher motivation to learn the target language compared to their male peers. Third, the choice of major among CFL learners appeared to influence their language learning motivations, with a notable distinction between Chinese majors and non-Chinese majors in five motivational variables: integrativeness attitudes towards the learning situation, language anxiety, parental encouragement, and passive motivation.