In this Swedish case study of four upper secondary students engaged in simultaneous L2 (English) and L3 (Spanish, French and Russian) learning, a possible selves approach was used to investigate the impact of English on L3 motivation. Using a maximum variation sampling strategy, participants were selected from a larger dataset (n=101). Semi-structured interviews were conducted using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis techniques. In analysing the data Markus and Nurius’ (1986) theory of the working self-concept was used to examine experiences of and cognitive responses to the presence of L2 English in L3 learning situations. The results indicate that for these individuals an L2 English self-concept is an active constituent with a referential function in working self-concepts activated in L3 learning situations. To offset the potentially negative effects of the incursion of L2 English, some of the individuals recruited different forms of positive self-knowledge into the working self-concept. For one participant the powerful referential effect of English was such that it became difficult to sustain a viable L3-speaking/using self. The results suggest that the inclusion of a working self-concept component in possible selves motivational research may be methodologically rewarding, particularly in multilingual settings and/or where contextual or process factors are in focus.    

Motivation in simultaneous L2 learning situations is an area of research largely overlooked and studies from contexts where people are engaged in learning more than one L2 are rare. In their large-scale Hungarian research, Dornyei, Csizer and Nemeth found that pupils' positive attitudes to one L2 could cause interferences with attitudes to others, with English being the greatest source of such interference. In this article it is suggested that, as an alternative to interference, Markus and Nurius' theory of the working self-concept may offer a theoretically more coherent explanation for between-language effects in situations of simultaneous learning. Using a specially designed instrument, three hypotheses were tested for a sample of Swedish pupils actively engaged in learning two L2s. First, it was hypothesised that learners would have separate L2 self-concepts as speakers of different L2s, secondly, that FL self-concepts would be interpreted negatively in relation to English self-concepts and, finally, that a high degree of FL-to-English negative self-concept referencing would be associated with low FL motivation. Whilst tentative support was found for all three hypotheses, with negative effects of English being most noticeable among boys, the results need to be followed up by further research employing more exacting methodologies.

Whilst adults in Sweden place great importance on communicative competence in English, interest in learning other FLs and support for multilingualism are low. This is mirrored in the attitudes of pupils in compulsory and post-compulsory education, where English is a popular subject but opt-out and drop-out rates for FLs are high. Whilst international research has shown that initial enthusiasm for FLs often declines after instruction begins, and that girls are more positive to FLs than boys, little is known about the language attitudes of pupils at the time when a new FL is introduced into the curriculum. The aim of this study is thus to investigate Swedish girls’ and boys’ FL attitudes prior and subsequent to the introduction of a new FL into the curriculum, to compare these with attitudes to their first FL, English, and to investigate gender variances. The results reveal that although pupils’ enthusiasm for their new FL declines after a year of instruction, it is nevertheless stronger than for English. Girls and boys approach their studies of a new FL with different attitudes, girls having more positive self-concepts as FL speakers and a greater interest in the communicative potential of FLs.