This study attempts to synthesise the scholarship on second language (L2) motivation and systematically examines the theoretical approaches, methods, research instruments, and learning contexts found in recent research published between 2010 and 2019. Following a comprehensive survey of six influential, high-impact journals in the field, 100 motivation studies were identified that met our eligibility criteria. The publications were coded for the samples, research paradigms, methodological approaches, frameworks, data collection methods, and reporting practices (e.g. piloting, reliability estimates). Frequencies and percentages of publication characteristics were then calculated. Among other results (e.g. the need to look at motivation from the Global South perspectives, development of different theoretical approaches, the rise of qualitative research), the study revealed that the vast majority of publications employ the L2 Motivational Self System model as an analytical framework and this orientation relates to its adaptability to different applied contexts. Methodologically, although studies in this domain differ in reporting of instrumentation, real improvements in terms of methodological quality and transparency in reporting practices, particularly regarding effect sizes, are recommended. In addition, although the motivational publications most often employ quantitative methods to collect data, future explorations need to embrace innovative research methods (such as idiodynamics, Q methodology, retrodictive qualitative modelling) in order to investigate motivational dynamics. The study concludes with useful directions for future motivation research.