In this article we address two key questions in the application of dynamical systems theory (DST) to second language acquisition (SLA) that have not been resolved in recent debates about this issue. The first question relates to reductionism. Is an antireductionist position a necessary element of DST? We show that the radical antireductionist…

The recent dynamic turn in second language acquisition research has called for an investigation in learner agency by taking its complex dynamic nature into account. Informed by complex dynamic systems theory (CDST), this study investigated the agency of learners in a complex educational context where mainstream schooling and private tutoring…

This complex article has six subsections. Following a brief introduction, one team of three co-authors and three single authors present compact statements of their distinctive individual research perspectives on second language acquisition and teaching (SLA/T): Atkinson, Mejía-Laguna, and Ribeiro offer a sociocognitive perspective; Cappellini…

This study investigated changes in motivation, self-efficacy beliefs, and a range of emotions, including enjoyment, hope, pride, curiosity, anxiety, boredom, apathy, confusion, and shame, from a complex dynamic systems theory (CDST) perspective over a 2-year period in the Hungarian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context. Using the same…

Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) has significantly reshaped our understanding of second language learning and teaching across the micro, meso, and macro levels for several decades since its systematic introduction by Larsen-Freeman and Cameron (2008). This study conducts a comprehensive review of empirical research on second language learning…

The number of immigrant students in Finland is increasing; thus, this qualitative case study investigates ways of providing targeted support measures for recently arrived Finnish language learners (RAFLLs) in Finnish lower secondary education. Focusing on linguistic responsiveness, the teaching arrangements and support measures are examined not…

Network analysis is a method used to explore the structural relationships between people or organizations, and more recently between psychological constructs. Network analysis is a novel technique that can be used to model psychological constructs that influence language learning as complex systems, with longitudinal data, or cross-sectional data.…

Research on language motivation has tended to focus on the phenomena of demotivation and remotivation in the English classroom. This study utilized Q methodology to analyze the dynamics of demotivation and remotivation among 15 Chinese university students during their English learning process from primary school to senior middle school. Informed…

Learner motivation is an essential ingredient for successful language learning. This article investigates the motivating and demotivating factors affecting the motivation of fifty-eight EAP learners' L2 learning. Guided by complex dynamic systems theory, with a dual focus on both what factors are important and what role these play in the L2…

Background/purpose: Although studies on teacher research are becoming more common in English language teaching (ELT), there is still a lack of understanding regarding how university lecturers shape their research identities. Using Ecological systems theory and Self-determination theory, this study examines the construction of research identities…

Teacher motivation has only recently been explored in relation to higher education teachers (Sahakyan et al., 2018; Sampson 2016). This is also true for English for Specific Purposes (ESP) lecturers, who teach specialized English in other disciplines. These teachers often face unique challenges, including teaching content outside their expertise,…

Teachers often hesitate to advocate for multilingual learners (MLs) beyond their classrooms due to insufficient training and a perceived lack of agency to influence systemic change. Previous instructional coaching models have typically focused on improving classroom practices rather than fostering broader advocacy, resulting in limited…

Teachers are unclear how to adapt pedagogical techniques in digital play to enhance language development for young children in the digital era and with the changes in early childhood education. The purpose of this study is to analyze how teachers understand the development and teaching of early childhood language in early grades with digital game…

Learner emotions represent sudden, dynamic, and complex adaptations to the language classroom environment. Recent Second Language Acquisition research calls for a more holistic perspective in approaching classroom emotions, one that considers emotional variations between and across learners, and which foregrounds the interconnections among…

Multiple language learning has been largely neglected in L2 motivation research. Recently, complexity principles have been used to model multilingual motivation. In this work, multilingual self-guides are conceptualised as emergent from interactions between the motivation systems of different languages. Motivational systems and their emergent…