Abstract

   In the field of Second Language Acquisition, learner motivation and attitudes toward the target language has been well researched over the last thirty years. Scholars in this field have been adopting insightful views related to motivation from other fields, such as social psychology, cognitive psychology, and educational psychology.
   In Japan, more than half of all high school graduates go on to pursue a college education. Recently however, society' s expectation of universities has changed dramatically-their role is now expected to include motivating those students who seem reluctant to study and show little interest in learning, either a foreign language or other subjects.
   The aim of this article is to review of such demotivated learner states, by reviewing previously written articles and focusing on social factors in order to find ways to develop motivation in such students.