Pub Date : 2021-01-11DOI: 10.21203/RS.3.RS-141389/V2
Akbar A. Jahanbakhsh, P. Ajideh
The present study is a methodological synthesis aiming to evaluate the adherence of Iranian L2 papers to the study quality standards. Ten Iranian journals were selected based on the latest ranking of Iran’s Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology (MSRT), and all experimental papers (N = 367) published from their beginnings were explored for study quality with regards to sampling, design, statistical tests, reporting practices and data sharing, and visual presentation. In the evaluation of the papers, the protocols proposed by Gass and Plonsky (2011) and Pagout and Plonsky (2017) were moderated and some recent issues proposed by APA’s (2018) Journal Article Reporting Standards and some scholars (e.g., Hu & Plonsky, 2019; Khany & Tazik, 2019; Larson-Hall, 2017) were added. The results showed that while there were issues, like acceptable sample size, use of pre-testing, reporting descriptive and inferential statistics, and ensuring the reliability of instruments, that were acceptably adhered to quality standards, problematic areas existed in all five facets of quality, and the majority of them stayed constant or changed slightly over time. The shortcomings caused by such lack of adherence are discussed to identify the challenges in the way of improving the papers’ quality. Although the results are obtained from a specific context, the implications may be generalizable to other contexts where English is taught and researched as a foreign language.
{"title":"The Path in Behind and the Challenges in Front: A Methodological Synthesis of Iranian L2 Papers","authors":"Akbar A. Jahanbakhsh, P. Ajideh","doi":"10.21203/RS.3.RS-141389/V2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/RS.3.RS-141389/V2","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 The present study is a methodological synthesis aiming to evaluate the adherence of Iranian L2 papers to the study quality standards. Ten Iranian journals were selected based on the latest ranking of Iran’s Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology (MSRT), and all experimental papers (N = 367) published from their beginnings were explored for study quality with regards to sampling, design, statistical tests, reporting practices and data sharing, and visual presentation. In the evaluation of the papers, the protocols proposed by Gass and Plonsky (2011) and Pagout and Plonsky (2017) were moderated and some recent issues proposed by APA’s (2018) Journal Article Reporting Standards and some scholars (e.g., Hu & Plonsky, 2019; Khany & Tazik, 2019; Larson-Hall, 2017) were added. The results showed that while there were issues, like acceptable sample size, use of pre-testing, reporting descriptive and inferential statistics, and ensuring the reliability of instruments, that were acceptably adhered to quality standards, problematic areas existed in all five facets of quality, and the majority of them stayed constant or changed slightly over time. The shortcomings caused by such lack of adherence are discussed to identify the challenges in the way of improving the papers’ quality. Although the results are obtained from a specific context, the implications may be generalizable to other contexts where English is taught and researched as a foreign language.","PeriodicalId":53465,"journal":{"name":"Language Related Research","volume":"36 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73980887","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Research on the influence of affective factors in language learning has grown in recent years largely due to the recognition of the role they play in second language (L2) acquisition (Henter, 2014). This study investigates two affective factors, confidence and anxiety, and how they impact young Finnish adults when using English in different formal and informal communicative situations. A multiple case study design is employed to gather different experiences and perceptions of young Finns’ willingness to use English in different situational contexts. To explore confidence and anxiety in specific speaking scenarios, the study used photo-elicitation interviews, in which a set of photographs was used as a stimulus with regular interview questions (Harper, 2002). Findings show that young Finnish adults attribute the lack of authentic oral communication in their comprehensive English education as being partially responsible for their apprehension in speaking English, and that fear of judgment, particularly in more formal scenarios, often induces a sense of anxiety. Confidence in using English was sensed through the perception that their English was equal to or better than those around them and was also ameliorated by the familiarity and casualness of the situation. The photo-elicitation method proved fruitful for evoking more detailed and personal experiences and helped participants visualize the scenarios, providing more lucid and candid responses. The study affirms a need for more research on Finnish adults’ affective factors in their use of English and advocates for the wider application of photo-elicitation in Applied Linguistics research.
{"title":"Young Finnish Adults Perspectives on Using English in Different Social Situations: Exploring the Influence of Affective Factors through Photo-Elicitation Interviews","authors":"Reetta Rantala, Vincent Greenier","doi":"10.29252/lrr.11.5.59","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29252/lrr.11.5.59","url":null,"abstract":"Research on the influence of affective factors in language learning has grown in recent years largely due to the recognition of the role they play in second language (L2) acquisition (Henter, 2014). This study investigates two affective factors, confidence and anxiety, and how they impact young Finnish adults when using English in different formal and informal communicative situations. A multiple case study design is employed to gather different experiences and perceptions of young Finns’ willingness to use English in different situational contexts. To explore confidence and anxiety in specific speaking scenarios, the study used photo-elicitation interviews, in which a set of photographs was used as a stimulus with regular interview questions (Harper, 2002). Findings show that young Finnish adults attribute the lack of authentic oral communication in their comprehensive English education as being partially responsible for their apprehension in speaking English, and that fear of judgment, particularly in more formal scenarios, often induces a sense of anxiety. Confidence in using English was sensed through the perception that their English was equal to or better than those around them and was also ameliorated by the familiarity and casualness of the situation. The photo-elicitation method proved fruitful for evoking more detailed and personal experiences and helped participants visualize the scenarios, providing more lucid and candid responses. The study affirms a need for more research on Finnish adults’ affective factors in their use of English and advocates for the wider application of photo-elicitation in Applied Linguistics research.","PeriodicalId":53465,"journal":{"name":"Language Related Research","volume":"58 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84770985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}