This document discusses demotivation in English language learning among Vietnamese students. It investigates the reasons for demotivation, called demotives, the degree to which different demotives influence students, and how students overcome demotivation. A study using recall essays from 100 university students found demotivation was significant and identified sources of demotives. Research shows motivation is key to second language acquisition, but many students in countries requiring English education fail to learn it and lose interest over time, becoming demotivated. This study addresses the extent of demotivation as a problem for Vietnamese students learning English as a foreign language, factors contributing to demotives, whether demotives differ in impact level, and how students overcome demotivation.

1. DEMOTIVATION:
UNDERSTANDING
RESISTANCE TO ENGLISH
LANGUAGE LEARNING – THE
CASE OF VIETNAMESE
STUDENTS
Richard B. Baldauf Jr. The University of
Queensland, Australia

2.  Demotivation in English language learning was
investigated. There are three points in this
paper
 the reasons (the demotives); the degree of
influence of different demotives; and (iii)
students’ experiences in overcoming
demotivation.

3.  Using stimulated recall essays from 100
university students of their foreign language
learning experiences, the findings indicated
that demotivation was a significant issue for
EFL learning, and a framework for discussing
the different sources of demotives was
developed

4.  Research results indicate that motivation is
one of the main determining Demotivation:
Understanding Resistance to English
Language Learning 80 factors in an
individual’s success in developing a second
(L2) or foreign language (FL).

5.  In most countries around the world, large
numbers of students are being required to
learn it through compulsory programs in
schools and universities.
 many students are failing to learn it
successfully.
 Despite the current extrinsic pressures to learn
English as a foreign language in Vietnam,
many students don’t seem ever to have
developed any interest in learning English, or if
they have, they seem to have lost that interest
for some reason, that is, they have become

6.  Teachers perceived the causes of
demotivation to be related to psychological,
attitudinal, social, historical and geographical
reasons, but they explicitly excluded
themselves. The students’ perceived reasons
for demotivation also varied, i.e., teachers’
behaviors, class size, etc. Unfortunately,
Chambers did not try to determine what the
demotives were or to look at them critically,
instead simply listing the students’ opinions.

7.  Oxford’s 1998 study advanced the
understanding of demotives by taking into
account the time factor. She recognized that
demotivation is a process that can be best
understood by “looking backward”, i.e., by
asking participants to recall their learning
experiences over a period of time, in this case,
five years.

8.  The focus of this study was therefore on the
role of demotivation in students’ learning of
English as a foreign language with the
following four issues being addressed: (1) To
what extent is demotivation a problem? (2) If
demotivation is a significant problem, what are
the factors that are likely to contribute to
demotives? (3) Are demotives different in
terms of their levels of impact? (4) What are
the factors that assist students to overcome
demotivation?