The effects of teacher motivational practice on learner L2 achievement: A self-determination theory perspective using structural equation modeling

A central point that has attracted researchers’ attention for several decades is related to establishing the causal relationship between student motivation and second language (L2) achievement. Based on self-determination theory, we investigated the effects of motivational interventions applied by English language teachers on subsequent L2 achievement through the meditating effect of students’ basic psychological need for autonomy, intrinsic motivation, and motivational intensity. To obtain precise results, we applied structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine whether the impact of the intervention on L2 achievement was direct and/or indirect. The results of SEM indicated that the effect is both direct and indirect, and the model variables explained approximately 87% of the variance in students’ achievement. Moreover, the indirect effects of the intervention on L2 achievement were significant, suggesting the key role that autonomy and intrinsic motivation played in understanding the positive impact of teacher motivational strategies on students’ language achievement. The experimental-driven findings represented by the SEM model in the present study denote a strong empirical evidence of the role of teacher motivational practice on student L2 achievement and important implications for the English as a foreign language (EFL) profession in this regard.