Motivation, investment, and identity in English language development: A longitudinal case study

Drawing on Norton's (2010) conceptualization of motivation as investment, this longitudinal case study investigates how a Korean international graduate student's motivation affected her English language improvement and learning strategies. In the study, the researcher not only analyzed a series of regular face-to-face interviews with the participant conducted over 12 months, but also considered how the participant, her teachers, and her friends evaluated her oral English. Specifically, the study explored how the participant's investment helped her gain legitimate peripheral participation in academic and non-academic settings. This study interpreted these processes to present the participant's experiences, and to show how her identity was socially constructed across time and place.