Innovation in Language Learning
Imagining the Multilingual Self: Motivation and Identity among Maltese Adolescents
Michelle Panzavecchia, Institute for Education (Malta)
Loredana Muscat, Institute for Education (Malta)
Abstract
This study investigates the psychological and contextual factors shaping multilingual identity among Maltese adolescents within an increasingly multilingual educational landscape. While Malta has traditionally been characterised as bilingual, recent demographic and linguistic shifts have transformed classrooms into more diverse multilingual spaces. Drawing on Dörnyei’s L2 Motivational Self System and post-structural perspectives on identity, the study examines how socio-cognitive beliefs, language attitudes, instrumental value beliefs, and peer interaction contribute to the development of multilingual identity. Data were collected from 402 secondary school students aged 10–14 through a validated online questionnaire. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was employed to explore both direct and indirect relationships among the constructs. Findings revealed that motivation emerged as the strongest predictor of multilingual identity (β = 0.60, p < .001), explaining 48% of its variance. Instrumental value beliefs also demonstrated a direct influence on multilingual identity, suggesting that pragmatic perceptions of language learning become integrated into learners’ self-concepts. Additional significant predictors included socio-cognitive beliefs, second language attitudes, and peer interaction. Small but significant effects were also found for gender and classroom multilingual context. The findings highlight the importance of future-oriented motivational self-guides in shaping adolescents’ multilingual identities and reinforce the need for educational policies and pedagogies that support both the practical and personal dimensions of multilingualism. The study contributes to current research by integrating motivational and sociocultural approaches to identity formation within a contemporary multilingual educational context.
Keywords: multilingual identity; motivation; multilingualism; adolescents; L2 Motivational Self System; Malta
REFERENCES
[1] Dörnyei, Z. (2009). The L2 motivational self system. Multilingual Matters.
[2] Henry, A. (2017). L2 motivation and multilingual identities. The Modern Language Journal, 101(3), 548–565.
[3] Norton, B. (2013). Identity and language learning: Extending the conversation. Multilingual Matters.
