Attitudinal Dispositions of Students toward the English Language: Sociolinguistic and Sociocultural Considerations

Problem Statement: The status, value, and importance of a language is often measured by the attitudes toward that language. Learning a second or foreign language and attaining proficiency in it is closely related to the attitudes of learners toward the language. A few studies have investigated language attitudes of Turkish students toward the English language in Turkey. However, the same issue has not been explored among Turkish students learning and using the English language in a country where English is spoken as the first language. Purpose: This exploratory study investigated the attitudes of Turkish students toward learning and using English language as they lived and pursued their university degrees in a northeastern city in the United States. The study examined students’ attitudinal dispositions toward English based on sociolinguistic and sociocultural considerations. Methods: The study included 8 student participants (4 male and 4 female) who were born in Turkey and spoke Turkish as their native language. They were all enrolled in a state university studying different programs in Engineering Sciences and Social Sciences. Data were collected conducting in-depth interviews with students over a two-month period. Participants were interviewed twice individually, and 16 interviews were conducted in total. Each interview took 50 to 60 minutes and was transcribed by the researcher. Data analysis included (1) intensive (re)readings of interview transcripts and identifying attitudinal themes and patterns in the data through emergent coding; and (2) making qualitative connections among themes and patterns through identifying their consistency by applying axial coding. Coded dataset was then descriptively interpreted in its entirety. Findings: Participants displayed mostly positive dispositions toward learning and using the English language; however, their attitudinal patterns varied with regards to sociolinguistic and sociocultural considerations. While they described English as a beautiful language, their perceptions about the beauty of the language associated with different interpretations regarding linguistic and sociolinguistic aspects of English, such as euphonic sound system and lexical richness, and English as the language of global connection in different discourses (i.e., academia, media, and corporate world). On the other hand, participants viewed English as a threat to cultural and linguistic identities at the individual and societal dimensions. Devaluing the native language against English and the recent phenomenon of lexical penetration of English words into the Turkish language engendered participants’ patriotic feelings about their native language and surfaced their nationalistic ties with their cultural and linguistic identities. Lastly, participants attached a variety of instrumental and survival values to the English language. They felt restricted expressing their feelings in English when they engaged in affective conversational discourses with native speakers. These attitudes, as well as the patterns they demonstrated in enacting such attitudes differed across genders significantly. Conclusions and Recommendations: Different than a few studies that investigated the topic with English language learners in Turkey, the present study presents new insights by exploring the issue from the perspective of Turkish students as they learned and used the English language in the United States. Attitudinal studies can potentially shed light on the ways in which perceptions attached a language may impact learners’ willingness to learn and develop proficiency in that language, and reveal their critical stances toward that language at sociolinguistic and sociocultural dimensions.