This study demonstrates the changes in EFL learners' attitudes over seven months of SRL based on self-study. Using the Q methodology, four learners in two groups are qualitatively compared to determine how learners come to deal with learning English self-regulatorily from the self-motivational beliefs, goals setting, and self-reflection of SRL.
This study aims to qualitatively explore the process of changes in self-regulated learning (SRL) under the conditions of self-study. SRL is an open-ended cyclical model that involves forethought, performance/volitional control, and self-reflection (Zimmerman, 2000). Learning is considered to work well when these three phases function cyclically and deliberately. However, there is little research on how SRL changes over time in L2 self-study settings. Although changes in SRL have been investigated in relation to engagement in classroom activities (Nitta & Baba, 2015) and effectiveness of intervention (Lam, 2015), little is known about SRL outside the classroom. Indeed, in an EFL environment, studying outside the classroom is required to achieve ultimate L2 proficiency (Hiromori, 2015). The study is focused on four university students, each a voluntary L2 learner. Based on the Q methodology results from a previous study by the author, the students belonged to two representative SRL-perception groups (mastery-oriented and stress-driven) are presented. They were selected because they changed their attitudes toward SRL over time even though their original aim was to improve their English skills through self-study. Two-week interval interviews (13 in total), where the learners set and reflected on their learning goals, were conducted. The participants studied online material and filled out learning logs. The seven-month session gave no instruction regarding SRL. Thematic analysis was used to identify the thematic codes of each learner by coding the interview data and further converging higher-order codes according to code similarity. The two groups were then compared and contrasted. At the beginning of the self-study, all four learners held similar values regarding English learning: they recognized that English was essential, that they had an internal rather than external goal orientation, and that they would work as scheduled. During the self-study, the mastery-oriented learners achieved SRL in light of SRL theory because they proactively set goals and reflected on their self-study, supported by the strong self-efficacy and outcome expectation. Meanwhile, for the stress-driven learners, the more they proceeded with their self-study, the less self-efficacy and outcome expectation they felt. They managed to advance by using their anxiety and fear of not becoming worse English users. The results suggest that SRL strategies cannot be activated without sufficient self-motivation beliefs. The foundation of motivational beliefs activates the forethought stage, which then becomes a source of evaluation in the self-reflection stage; thus, habituation of self-study might not be attained even if the learners intended to devise a way to study English without self-motivation beliefs.
