Implications from Self—identity in the Second Foreign Language Learning

【Abstract】： This article is aimed to explore how different foreign language learning experiences affect those who are learning another new foreign language. The result implies that those whose majors are foreign languages tend to have more self-identities than those whose majors are not foreign languages. Thus， theoretically speaking， those who are majored in foreign languages can communicate with foreigners more smoothly.

【Key words】： implication， self-identity， second foreign language learning

1. Introduction

Identity refers to ‘our understanding of who we are and who we think other people are’ （Danielewicz， 2001， p. 10）. Identity is strongly interwined with socio-cultural factors， such as language， societal norms， history， and belief systems. Negotiating or living in-between two cultures/societies can be psychologically and socio-culturally challenging， and as a result immigrants frequently experience normative acculturation identity crises， including ethno-cultural identity conflict， which has a detrimental effect on the psychological （Ward， Stuart， Kus， 2011） and socio-cultural （Leong Ward， 2000） adjustment of acculturating individuals. For university students whose majors are foreign languages， although they don’t have the real experiences of surviving a new culture， they have the theoretical experience of different cultures from books when they are studying a foreign language. This project is aimed to do an exploratory study on the students’ self- identity in the second foreign language learning. The participants of the study are those who are taking the blended learning MA Program for Applied Linguistics English Language Education. They need learn the second foreign language； those who choose Japanese as the second foreign language were chosen as the of the study.

2. Literature review

Identity is a process of identifying or non-identifying with a particular position in life and continually modifying this position and attitudes toward it （Crawshaw， 2001， p.101）. According to Pinney， a principal objective of one’s adolescent years is the formation of an identity， and ‘those who fail to achieve a secure identity are faced with identity confusion， a lack of clarity about who they are and what their role is in life.’ This suggests that identity development plays a critical role in the individual’s psychological well-being. Thus， the necessity of understanding your sense of identity is self-evident. An uderstanding of identity is also an essential aspect of the study and practice of intercultural communication. Increased international contact driven by the processes of globalization and armed conflicts， and domestic diversity arising from immigration， intercultural marriages， and divergent values add to the importance of identity in intercultural situations. （LARRY A.， RICHARD E.， EDWIN R.， 2009， p. 153）

From a social-developmental point of view identity can be defined as a self-regularory social-psychological construct that directs attention and influences information processes and behavior identity helps us understand who we are， creates meaning and commitments， forms coherence and harmony between goals， beliefs and values， and fosters a sense of personal control and the ability to recognize future possibilities （Adams Marshall， 1996， p. 433）. Although we use the terms identity and identities interchangeably， we have also pointed out that in actuality one’s identity consists of multiple identities， which act in concert. The importance and saliency of any single identity is a function of the situation. As the context varies， you may choose to emphasize one or more of your identities. While attending class， your identity as a student will be in the forefront， but when you arrive at work， your occupational identity will become paramount. For the participants in this study， when they are having Japanese classes， they are more willing to identify them as English learners. Especially when they are having grammar classes， what they usually draw back on is the grammatical rules they learned in English classes， which seems that they unconsciously choose the identity of English learners over the identity of Chinese

Regardless of the identity or identities that are on display， all are tempered， to various degrees， by culture. Identities are largely a product of group membership. This is mentioned by Ting-Toomey when she writes， ‘individuals acquire and develop their identities through interaction with others in their cultural group.’ Personal identity consists of those characteristics that set one apart from others in his or her in-group， those things that make one unique， and how one sees oneself （LARRY A.， RICHARD E.， EDWIN R.， 2009， p. 161）. Human history is increasingly a race between intercultural education and disaster. If education is not intercultural， it is probably not education， but rather the inculcation of nationalist or religious fundamentalism （David Coulby）.

Cultures differ in the degree to which there are boundaries between an individual and the environment he or she is in.Still， a culture stipulates how to draw the lines between self and others. （Bates Hoffer， Jia Yunxin， Honna Nobuyuki， Song Li， 2014， p. 131）.

Your first step toward knowing yourself should begin with your won culture. Remember， all people see the world through the lens of their culture （LARRY A.， RICHARD E.， EDWIN R.， 2009， p. 387）. All individuals are socialized within a larger cultural membership group. We acquire our cultural group memberships through the guidance of primary caretakers and peer associations during our formative years. Furthermore， physical appearance， racial traits， skin color， language usage， self-appraisal， and other-perception factors all enter into the cultural identity construction equation （William B. Gudykunst， 2014， p. 215）.

Thus， it is critical that we reflect on the various aspects of our own cultural identity and examine their positive and negative impacts on our personal and professional development （LARRY A.， RICHARD E.， EDWIN R.， 2009， p. 387）.

3. Research Method

3.1 Participants

A qualitative approach using in-depth interview was adopted in order to gain a subtle change in their self- identities during Japanese learning. This method was chosen because it provides detailed descriptions of how they identify themselves during the study of Japanese. Participants were those who are taking Japanese classes.

6 of them were majored in English； one was majored in computer and one was majored in Russian. 7 out of eight participants have the experience of learning a foreign language. They have a better understanding of other cultures than the one who was majored in computer does， because of which， it is possible to compare the influence on self-identification learning the second foreign language casts .

3.2 Instrument and procedures

3.2.1 Interview

The interview is a powerful implement for researchers； it is a flexible tool for data collection， enabling multi-sensory channels to be used： verbal， non-verbal， spoken and heard. The order of the interview may be controlled while still giving space for spontaneity， and the interviewer can press not only for complete answers but also for responses about complex and deep issues. （Cohn， L.， Manion， L. Morris， K. p349）

The interview consisted of a list of open-ended questions. The questions covered three domains. One who has a good knowledge of his/her own culture and history tends to have a clear self-identity. He who has poor understanding of his own culture or history is inclined to have a blurry self-identity. As people struggle to adapt to the dynamics of modern social life， filled with the push and pull of globalization and traditional ways， identity is becoming an important factor in how they live their lives and with whom they associate. Identity is dynamic and multiple. By this we mean that identity is not static， but changes as function of your life experiences. In addition， you have more than one identity. People usually set aside some old identities after they acquire some new ones. One’s identity is a composite of multiple identities， which are integrated； they do not work in isolation， but instead operate in combination based on the situation. As an illustration， when you are in the classroom， your identity as a student is salient， but you are still a male or female， a friend of some of your classmates， a part-time employee， a son or daughter， and perhaps even a wife or a husband， to list just a few identities.

（a） Knowledge of self

How much you know about Chinese history； how much you know about Chinese social norms； how much you know about Chinese values

（b） Knowledge of others

How much you know about English history and Japanese history；

How much you know about English and Japanese social norms； understanding of English and Japanese values； understanding of English and Japanese cultural taboos； （c）Attitudes

Be willing to learn from those who come from different culture； be willing to resepect foreigners’ lifestyles and customs； be willing to learn foreign languages and cultures well

I asked participants to tell me about their foreign language learning experiences and explain the reasons behind their identity negotiation strategies.

The interviews were conducted between January 4th 2016 and January 24th 2016

Majority of the interviews were conducted via emails. Two of the interviews were conducted face to face in the classroom； they lasted for about 20 minutes.

The questions used in the interviews are used in the questionnaire， too.

3.2.2 Questionnaire

The questionnaire is a widely used and useful instrument for collecting survey information， providing structured， often numerical data， being able to be administered without the presence of the researcher， and often being comparatively straightforward to analyse （Wilson and Mclean 1994） （Cohn， L.， Manion， L. Morris， K. P317）.

（1） Do you read books or watch movies on Chinese history？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（2） Do you read books or watch movies on other countries’ history？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（3） Do you have experiences of getting along with foreigners？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（4） Are you willing to chat with your foreign teachers？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（5） Do you talk about your foreign teachers with your friends or classmates？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（6） Have you ever worked with foreigners？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（7） Have you ever chatted with foreigners？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

（8） Do you have confidence in yourself when it comes to getting on with foreigners？

A never B seldom C sometimes D often

4. Data analysis

To protect privacy of the participants， each interview transcript was assigned as pseudonym （e.g.， Lucy） before data analysis， and quotes cited from interviews were identified by their respective identification pseudonyms. Comparative methods were used to decode their experiences of moving among identities of Chinese， English learner and Japanese learners. Their identities vary with contexts. As for the two face to face participants， whose majors are English， when they are at work or with friends， they tend to distinguish themselves from others by identifying themselves as someone whose major is English. When they are in the classrooms studying English， they prefer the identity of Chinese， and usually emphasize the identity by comparing the history and culture of China with that of England. While they are having Japanese classes， they unconsciously draw back on English learning experience instead of Chinese learning experience. For the participant whose major is Russian， she tended to compare Japanese studying with Russian studying experience instead of Chinese studying experience. And for the participant who was majored in computer， he showed preference in Chinese learning experience instead of English learning experience.

Table 1. Distribution of self-identity across different majors.

Self-identification in English classess number of participants Chinese identity 7

Russian identity 1

_____________________________________________________________________

Table 2. Distribution of self-identity across different majors.

Self-identificatin in Japanese classes number of participants

Chinese identity 1

English learner identity 6

Russian learner identity 1

5. Results

The data were grouped under three domains covered by interview questions： self-knowledge of Chinese history； knowledge of English history； willingness to communicate with people from different culture.

Self-knowledge of Chinese history

Table 1 showed that in English classes the participant whose major is computer

together with the participants whose majors are English tend to have a steady identity

Chinese. The participant whose major is Russian prefers to identify herself as the

Russian learner.

Table 2 showed that while they are having Japanese classes， the participants whose majors are English show preference to the identity English learner instead of Chinese learner. The participant whose major is computer holds the identity Chinese and the participant whose major is Russian tends to the identity Russian learner.

6. Discussion

This study examined what self- identity participants will choose when they are studying the second foreign language. The participants whose majors are not related to foreign languages appear to show strong self-identity of Chinese. The participants whose majors are related to foreign languages seem to apply shifted identities. The classroom is an important intercultural setting. First， it provides opportunities for learners to gain valuable insight into a culture by studying its perceptions of and approaches to education. Second， in most instances， the traditional goals of schools have been bound to universalistic intellectual or social functions associated with the dominant society.

Third， the influence culture has on education is to become aware of the informal knowledge of a culture.

The participants who have the experience of getting to know culture different from their own incline to possess different identities. While the participants who have not experienced foreign language learning seem to have single identity.

7. Conclusion

The study showed that foreign language learning enables learners to possess one or more than one identities when situation changes. The learners who have mastered a foreign language tend to identify themselves as foreign language learners when they are picking up another foreign language. Language shapes the way we think， and determines what we think about （Benjamin Lee Whorf）. If we spoke a different language， we would perceive a somewhat different world （Ludwig Witgenstein）. Obviously， language is at the core of human interaction. It enables us to exchange abstract ideas， setting us apart from other animal species by allowing us to say or write down abstract ideas （Communication between cultures p 221）. Language allows us to pass culture from one generation to the next. It was largely through language that you learned our cultural values and behaviors.

Using a language of one kind or another is a daily occurrence for nearly everyone in the world. You chat with friends， respond to questions in class， use a cell phone to call home， talk with coworkers and so on. Without language， you would be unable to speak， read， write， listen to others， or even talk to yourself- that is， to think. In effect， you would be unable to communicate without language. With the development of globalization， it is quite possible for us to master more than one foreign language in terms of intercultural communication. By learning a foreign language， you can get to know its history， culture， beliefs and values， which could get you well prepared theoretically to communicate with people from other cultures successfully.

Reference：

[1]Bates Hoffer， Jia Yuxin， Honna Nobuyuki， Song Li （2014）. INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION East and West （上海外語教育出版社）

[2]Larry A. Samovar and Richard E. Porter （2004）. Communication between cultures.（北京大學(xué)出版社）

[3]William B. Gudykunst （2014）. THEORIZING ABOUT INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION （上海外語教育出版社）