Second Language Motivational Orientations of Undergraduate Students at a Pakistani Public Sector University

Abstract

The study aims to examine the types of motivational orientations exhibited by students at the Pakistani universities for second language acquisition (SLA). The paper attempts to find the most influencing motivational orientation and the significant gender differences pertaining to acquire English as a second language. The quantitative data is collected through structured questionnaire from 197 students to evaluate the moderating dynamics of second language motivational orientations among undergraduate students at the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan. The findings of the study indicate that the instrumental and extrinsic orientations noticeably stimulate the motivation of second language learners in Pakistani context. Besides, contrary to the western researches, this paper demonstrates that the instrumental orientation of SLA is relatively higher in male students than females. Moreover, the study presents recommendations to facilitate the acquisition of second language that contribute considerably to the field of motivational research.