Exploring a possible relationship between the attitude of experienced English learners towards Australian English and their L2 motivation

This paper investigates a possible relationship between the motivation and attitude of learners towards L2 in the socio-cultural context of Australia. We used an explanatory mixed-methods approach and conducted a survey with 31 international postgraduate TESOL students at a regional university in Australia. Then we conducted semi-structured interviews with six of the students. The survey results suggest a relationship between the way a learner viewed Australian English and their motivation towards L2. The motivational factors were Ideal L2 Self, Linguistic Self Confidence, Cultural Interest, Instrumentality (Promotion) and Ought-to L2 Self. While all contributed to varying degrees in motivating the learners towards L2 learning, only the first three interacted significantly with learners’ attitudes towards Australian English. Further, our interview data highlight that the attitude of the learners with regard to their favorite language variety was based more on Australian English’s Inner Circle status than its linguistic characteristics.