2018 Volume 21 Issue 1 Pages 335-347
The purpose of this study was to assess the motivation and identity of students attending Japanese language schools, with special focus on length of study. 406 students were asked to compete a questionnaire based on Expectancy-Value Theory. The results of a two-way factorial analysis of different periods of study (less than 4 months, 6–10 months, and over twelve months) and gender indicated that some factors of motivation show a low number depending on the length of study at a school. They showed that the scores for “intrinsic value” and “ability expectancy” of students who had studied for more than one year were significantly low, and that the scores for “ability expectancy” of male students who had studied for 6–10 months were significantly higher than for female students. Regarding identity, psychosocial identity in students who had been studying Japanese for less than four months was significantly high. This indicates that educators need to be aware that students at Japanese language schools may have difficulty in maintaining high motivation and self-formation (identity) when they are attending a school for a long time.
