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Integrative Motivation As A Predictor Of Success In The Intermediate Foreign Language Classroom, Todd A. Hernandez

Spanish Languages and Literatures Research and Publications

This study investigates the ability of three variables—integrative motivation, instrumental motivation, and the need to fulfill a university foreign language requirement—to predict: (1) scores on a simulated oral proficiency interview (SOPI) and (2) the desire to enroll in a foreign language after fulfilling the language requirement. Analysis of data from a questionnaire and a SOPI administered to 130 students completing their fourth‐semester Spanish course identified integrative motivation as a significant predictor of both SOPI scores and students' desire to continue studying Spanish beyond the four‐semester foreign language requirement. A negative relationship was also found between the need to fulfill the …