Using Dörnyei’s  (2009) L2 Motivational Self System as the main theoretical framework, this paper reports a study of Saudi military cadets’ motivation to learn English. The study aimed to: a) investigate the usefulness of Dörnyei’s model for understanding and explaining English language motivation in this global context; b) capture other motivational factors seen to be relevant to the designated group’s motivation to learn English. A sample of 194 Saudi military cadets participated in the survey. Correlation and regression analysis of the data support the usefulness of the L2 Motivational Self System in assessing participants’ motivation to learn English. Language Learning Attitudes was found to be the best predictor of self-reported learning effort. In addition, Instrumentality Promotion and Instrumentality Prevention proved to be strong predictors of self-reported learning effort. Finally, the study hypothesised that a new construct ‘Religious Interest’ impacted on participants’ motivation to learn English, and regression analysis showed this was also a strong predictor of self-reported learning effort.

This study surveyed the English language learning motivation of 384 Saudi military cadets. The researcher applied structural equation modelling to analyse how a set of motivational factors interact in shaping the motivation to learn English of this under-researched context. The study found that the language learning effort was determined by the students’ attitudes towards the language learning process as well as their Ought-to L2 Self. However, the Ideal L2 Self contributed to the language learning effort indirectly with the mediation of the students’ attitudes towards the language learning. The influence of the students’ parents was salient as the parental encouragement contributed to the students’ Ought-to L2 self as well as their language learning attitudes. Finally, the students’ perception of the benefit of learning English for religious purposes (religious interest) contributed to the enjoyment derived from the process of language learning, which in turn impact the effort they invest in their language learning.

This study aims to investigate English language learning motivation and English language learning anxiety in Saudi military cadets. Some 174 Saudi military cadets completed a questionnaire specifically developed to be used in the context of Saudi Arabia. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to analyse a proposed model using Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) version 21. The study found that the students' language learning effort was determined by their Ideal L2 Self and their positive attitudes towards their immediate learning environment. However, the students' imposed social ideal-self as well as their negative attitudes towards their immediate learning environment contributed to their Ought-to L2 Self, which in turn increased their English learning anxiety. Parental encouragement and religious interest impacted on the Saudi L2 learners' Ideal L2 Self and their language learning attitudes, which might have helped them to see themselves as future L2 users and to adopt positive attitudes to their immediate learning environment. This in turn motivated them to invest more effort and be more persistent in learning English.

This paper is a report on the study of the relationship between foreign/second language (L2) motivation and vocabulary knowledge. The population of the study is the cadets of a military academy in Saudi Arabia who study English as a foreign language. The total number of participants is 195 Saudis. The author uses the L2 Motivational Self System to investigate the cadets’ L2 motivation and the vocabulary test “X-Lex” (Meara & Milton, 2003) to measure their vocabulary size (VS). The correlation analysis shows a positive moderate statistical correlation between the students’ L2 motivation and their VS because the Ideal L2 Self, the Language Learning Attitudes, and the Intended Learning Effort had a linear relationship with the VS. Nevertheless, the regression analysis reveals that none of these motivational scales is a predictor of the students’ VS. Finally, the correlation analysis and the regression analysis disclose a statistically significant correlation between the Saudi cadets’ self-perception as competent English users and their L2 motivation as well as their VS.

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