Second Language Learners and Their Self-confidence in Using English:

A Social Constructive Perspective

Jianwei Xu
University of Antwerp, Belgium

Bio data
Dr. Jianwei Xu holds a PhD in English language education from La Trobe University in
Australia and is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Antwerp in Belgium.
Her major research interests are identity issues in learning English as a second/foreign
language and intercultural communication.

Abstract
This paper examines how self-confidence is socially and discursively constructed through the
qualitative analyses of the lived experiences of two Chinese advanced learners/users of
English in Australia with data obtained from in-depth interviews. Built on sociocultural views
on L2 learning and Norton’s (2000) conception of self-confidence as being socially
constructed, the learners’ senses of confidence are shown to be strongly influenced by
external factors such as power relations in specific contexts of interaction. Besides, they
appear to be internally related to the learners’ previously established L2 identities shaped
along the paths of investment in learning English in China. Through a micro-analyses at the
sites of interaction and a description of the learners’ earlier language development, this paper
sheds light on the dynamic process of confidence construction. It also provides useful insights
into the nature of the complex relationships the learners have developed with English and the
significance of the interwoven relations between language, investment and identity.

Keywords: Self-confidence; L2 learning; Identity; Investment; Sociocultural perspectives;

Lived experiences

Introduction
The issue of self-confidence in second language (L2) learning has been primarily studied as
an affective variable with a social psychological approach in the broad context of research on
attitudes and motivation for L2 use and achievement (e.g., Clément, 1980; 1985; Gardner,
Tremblay, & Masgoret, 1997). Clément (1980, 1986), in particular, proposed the social
context model in which self-confidence was conceptualized as a key construct determining
the motivation to learn an L2 in multicultural settings and developed essentially as a result of
frequent and pleasant contacts with the L2 community. Consequently, the more confident the
learners are, the greater communicative competence they will achieve and the better

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psychological adjustment and cross-cultural adaptation they experience (Clément, 1986;
Clément & Kruidenier, 1985; Noels, Pon, & Clément, 1996; Yang, Noels, & Saumure, 2005).
Although these results are useful in pointing out the significant interrelations among
interethnic contact, self-confidence and communicative competence in acquiring an L2, these
studies appear to be limited in a number of ways. First, they have not dealt with the actual L2
use of learners, nor have they described how the learners became more or less confident when
interacting with members of different ethnolinguistic communities. Secondly, the social
context has been discussed merely with respect to its influence on determining L2 learners’
belief and attitude towards the L2 community as a group by using statistical instruments,
meaning that little is known concerning the nature of interactions between individual learners
and social contexts of learning and the effects of those on shaping their confidence. Thirdly,
while the extensive use of quantitative measures in these studies allowed for generalization to
characterize a homogeneous group, a potential disadvantage of this way of investigation is
that individual learners and their unique cultural, linguistic, psychological, social and
cognitive characteristics may have been overlooked.
In this paper, I examine self-confidence from a social constructive perspective
following Norton (1995; 1997; 2000) who argues that self-confidence should be seen as
socially constructed within and by the lived experiences of language learners and that the
meaning of this construct may change over time and space subject to inequitable relations of
power. Norton’s construal of self-confidence is fundamentally embedded within the emerging
theoretical representation of social context in second language acquisition (SLA) regarding
its direct involvement in creating positive and negative conditions for L2 learning and in
shaping multiple identities of the learners (e.g., Firth & Wagner, 1997; Hall, 1997; Norton,
1997; Pavlenko, 2002; Pennycook, 1999; Rampton, 1997; Zhu, Seedhouse, Li, & Cook,
2007). It also reflects the recent attempt to shift the focus of L2 learning from mastering the
intricacies of language specifics to emphasizing language use in context and the dialogic
interactions that arise between socially constituted individuals engaged in activities which are
co-constructed with other individuals (Lantolf & Pavlenko, 1995).
Thus, guided by the sociocultural perspectives of L2 learning (I follow Zuengler and
Miller (2006) in the use of sociocultural perspectives as a cover term for varied approaches
that foreground the social and cultural contexts of learning), I employ the case study
approach and investigate the social contextual factors underpinning the dynamic process in
which self-confidence of two Chinese advanced learners/ users of English is individually
shaped in Australia. In this paper, I make no distinction between L2 learner and user, a
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difference originally suggested by Cook (1999). I maintain that they are qualified as both L2
users and learners, judged by the level of their success and past as well as the then on-going
learning activities. In examining how the two women perceive their confidence within
specific contexts of interaction, I will demonstrate the way in which external factors such as
power relations condition the development of L2 learners’ senses of confidence. As the
learners seem to partially resort to their historically established L2 identities in interpreting
the interactive situations, I will also analyze the learners’ earlier language development in
order to explicate the sociohistorical cues accounting for the particular learning paths the
individuals carved out and their consequent learning outcomes. In doing so, this paper will
not only provide important empirical evidence to support Norton’s view on self-confidence as
a social phenomenon, but will also shed light on the nature of the complex relationships the
learners have developed with English and the impact of these relationships on their overall
language development.

Conceptualization of Self-confidence in L2 Learning

The notion of self-confidence pertaining to L2 learning was initially introduced by Clément
(1980, 1986) through the social context model as an innovative unitary construct
conceptually related to language anxiety as an affective aspect and perceived communicative
competence as a cognitive component in learning an L2. Clément (1980) posited that in cases
where L2 learning took place in a multicultural setting, the qualitative and quantitative
aspects of contact with the L2 community would heighten the learners’ self-confidence which
then became the most immediate motivating influence to learn an L2. In another social
psychological model of L2 learning, the model of willingness to communicate (WTC)
proposed by MacIntyre, Clément, Dörnyei and Noels (1998), self-confidence was also
represented as a central term. The WTC model was concerned with the functions of L2 use
and attempted to integrate a range of linguistic, communicative and social psychological
variables according to how closely they affect one’s willingness to communicate, leading to
more spontaneous, sustained and effective use of the L2. Unlike Clément who considered
self-confidence as a higher order construct comprising anxiety and self-evaluation of
proficiency, MacIntyre et al. (1998) focused on the way perceived competence and anxiety
affect WTC separately. Consequently, contending that some communicative situations might
entail more confidence than others, MacIntyre et al. (1998) distinguished trait-like self-

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confidence from state self-confidence, alluding to variations in L2 self-confidence across
time and situations.
Going beyond the social psychological scope, I notice that in some literature
concerning L2 learning, the term self-efficacy has been used instead of self-confidence,
similarly seen as an affective variable linked to motivation and language achievement (e.g.,
Chularut & DeBacker, 2004; Cotterall, 1999; Ehrman, 1996; Ehrman, Leaver & Oxford,
2003; Oliver, Purdie& Rochecouste, 2005). This is presumably because these studies opted
for highlighting the role of individuals’ belief in their capacities to achieve a desired outcome
from a social cognitive angle (Bandura, 1997). To clear the confusion, Tremblay and
Gardner(1995, p.507) stated that “self-confidence differs from self-efficacy mainly in terms
of the inclusion of an anxiety component”. Elsewhere in the field of SLA, due to the wide
influence of the work of Clément and his associates, self-confidence has often been seen as a
part of motivation construct, contributing to the explanation of the role of individual
differences in L2 learning (e.g., Ellis, 1994). Furthermore, perhaps due to its strong social
psychological connotation, self-confidence or self-efficacy has been more commonly
mentioned with regard to the cognitive beliefs and psychological gains the learners have and
experience in L2 learning (e.g., Ellis, 2008; Freeman & Freeman, 2007; Magogwe & Oliver,
2007; Tanaka & Ellis, 2003). As a result, until the arrival of Norton’s work, there has been
very little information in SLA literature about the nature of the process in which L2 learners
develop senses of confidence.
Norton (1995; 1997; 2000) came to form a different understanding of self-confidence,
upon noting how inequitable relations of power could limit the opportunities the L2 learners
had to practise English outside the classroom. Drawing on the lived experiences of a few
immigrant women in the Anglophone Canadian society and using diary study and in-depth
interview approaches, she found that while all of the women had a strong drive to
communicate and therefore were highly motivated to learn the language of the new
community, they, however, all experienced difficulty speaking under conditions of
marginalisation. They reported that they constantly felt inferior to their native English
speaking Canadian interlocutors and consequently felt uncomfortable speaking and their self-
confidence remained low. For Norton, the data clearly suggested that self-confidence or
anxiety could not be an inherent trait of the language learners, nor could the researchers
arbitrarily map the motivational factors as dominantly responsible for low language
achievement with little rigorous justification. Consequently, Norton (2000) established a

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social constructive view of self-confidence, maintaining that both self-confidence and anxiety
are socially constructed within and by the lived experiences of language learners.

Theoretical Framework
In taking up Norton’s theoretical stance on self-confidence, I have situated this study within a
broad sociocultural framework of L2 learning. The sociocultural approaches generally
assume that L2 learning is a situated, co-constructed process involving active engagement of
the learner in culturally, socially and politically shaped communicative contexts (Young,
2007; Zhu, et al., 2007; Zuengler & Miller, 2006). In this process, language is seen as a
symbolic resource and a site of identity construction (Bourdieu, 1991; Norton, 1997;
Pavlenko, 2002). In recent SLA literature, the ways L2 learners actively engage in learning
are strongly indicated in Norton’s (1995) notion of investment. Rooted in neoclassical
economics, investment was used by Norton (1995, p.17) in place of motivation, referring to
“the socially and historically constructed relationship of the learners to the target language
and their sometimes ambivalent desire to learn and practice it”. “If learners invest in a second
language, they do so with the understanding that they will acquire a wider range of symbolic
and material resources”. Thus, they themselves are constitutive of the contexts of learning
and reflexively construct and organize a sense of who they are and how they relate to the
social world (Barkhuizen, 2004). Consequently, “an investment in the target language is an
investment in a learner’s own identity, an identity which is constantly changing across time
and space” (Norton, 2000, p.11).
Norton’s attempt to highlight the dynamic and complex relationships between the
learners, their social surroundings and their social identity through the concept of investment
is believed to have pioneered “shifts in thinking about how and why second and foreign
language takes place, and especially the nature and effects of interactions between the learner
and contexts of learning” (Ricento, 2005, p.896). The concept itself has also been applied to a
number of studies, particularly in the contexts where language learners are seen as agents in
creating opportunities to achieve desired identity and overcome constraints in various
discourses of learning (Arkoudis & Davison, 2008; Kanno, 2003; Xu, 2005; Lin, Wang,
Akamatsu, & Riazi, 2002; McKay & Wong, 1996; Norton & Gao, 2008; Trent, 2008).
Given that engaging investment is also a process of providing learners with access to
power (Pittaway, 2004), the issues of linguistic legitimacy and power raised by Bourdieu
(1991) have particular relevance. Bourdieu(1991, p.69) postulated that “linguistic
competence is not a simple technical capacity but a statutory capacity” and “legitimate
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competence is the statutorily recognized capacity of an authorized person”. He went on to
assert that “the use of the legitimate language involves the claim to be heard, believed, and
obeyed”, and the exercise of its specific efficacy depends on the fact that the user can count
on the effectiveness of all the mechanisms which “secure the reproduction of the dominant
language and the recognition of its legitimacy”. Bourdieu’s(1991)interpretation of linguistic
competence in relation to the social status that an individual has in a society has set the
foundation for understanding ownership of English in L2 learning. Norton (1997), for
example, maintained that if learners of English cannot claim ownership of the language, they
might not consider themselves as legitimate speakers. Miller (1999) also stated that the
second language learners’ being heard by native English speakers led to access to further
legitimacy as L2 learners. Similarly, Lin et al. (2002) recounted how a non-native English
teacher initially felt denied the competence due to non-nativeness but reclaimed ownership of
English and gained linguistic as well as symbolic capital through her success in acquiring
linguistic and cultural resources to qualify herself for an English teaching job.
Bourdieu’s (1991) conception of linguistic legitimacy also points out that in learning
English as an L2 in mainstream society, some linguistic minority speakers may encounter
denial of access to particular linguistic markets with their voice not being heard, and lack the
power to impose reception. As a result, their identities are at a site of struggle (e.g., Miller,
2004; Norton, 2000). According to poststructuralist thinking, the lack of linguistic legitimacy
and potential identity crisis are closely tied to language ideologies (Blackledge & Pavlenko,
2001; Pavlenko, 2002). Blackledge and Pavlenko(2002)argued that language ideologies are
rarely about language alone, but are socially situated in the context of power relations in a
diverse range of contexts such as academic discourse, postcolonial language planning,
immigrant memoirs, education debates and the mass media. Following Blackledge and
Pavlenko(2002), language ideologies relate not so much to individual speakers’ attitudes to
their languages, or speakers using language in particular ways, but to the more profound
underlying values, practices and beliefs associated with language use by speakers and the
discourse which constructs values and beliefs at state, institutional, national and global levels.
One other concept that is important in the sociocultural framework of learning in
relevance to this paper is the situated and co-constructed view of L2 learning developed from
the work of Lave and Wenger(1991). According to this view, acquisition of new L2
knowledge and skills is seen as resulting from the growing sense of belonging to and
participation in particular communities of practice and increasing identification with
members of those communities (Toohey, Day, & Manyak, 2007). Among various ways to
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engage, participate and seek membership in the target community, the means of ‗imagination’
based on the work of Wenger (1998) has attracted increasing attention (Kanno & Norton,
2003; Pavlenko, 2003; Pavlenko & Norton, 2007). Pavlenko and Norton (2007) argued that
English learners’ imagining of their memberships to imagined communities affects their
learning trajectories, influencing their agency, motivation, investment and resistence in the
learning of English.
The Research
The research reported in this paper is a part of a larger study conducted in 2004, which
examined how three Chinese advanced learners of English came to shape dynamic and
evolving language identities across Chinese and Australian contexts of learning. The focus of
this paper is on the ways in which the learners perceived senses of confidence in interaction
with culturally different ones in Australia. Here I include data from only two learners in that
the third learner’s interactive experiences did not exclusively involve native English speaking
Australians and the inclusion of those would not do justice to a fair comparison with the two
other learners. In this paper, as the two selected learners were highly proficient in English,
their self-confidence was examined in view of its affective aspect – anxiety and
discomfort,rather than self evaluation of L2 skills (MacIntyre et al., 1998). The contexts of
interaction referred to the specific interactive events or occasions remembered by them as
important for the construction of their confidence. The aim of the study was to understand the
specific learning experiences that were real and significant to them and the processes in
which they made sense of the experiences for their perception of confidence and general
language development. The research was guided by two questions:
1. How do the two Chinese advanced learners of English perceive their self-
confidence in interactions with native English speaking Australians?
2. How and why is their self-confidence challenged or reinforced within self
nominated interactive events?

Participants
The data was drawn from two informants with the pseudonyms of Yolanda and Fiona. Both
Yolanda and Fiona used to be professional teachers of English in two universities located in
southwestern and central China. At the time of the study, they were both pursuing their
doctoral studies in two different universities in Melbourne, Australia. At the time of the

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interview, Fiona was 27 years old and had studied in Australia for less than a year, whereas
Yolanda aged 35 and had stayed there for nearly three years.

Method
Information about how the learners’ perception of self-confidence in specific events was
elicited through in-depth interviews consisting of two parts. For part one, the participants
were invited to first, estimate their sense of confidence as a Chinese speaker of English
following their transition from China to Australia, and second, to recollect a few occasions
where they felt most confident and least confident in the communication with native English-
speaking Australians. For both tasks, the informants were provided with visual charts
(Appendix A) so that they could more easily map out the estimation and compare the
experiences. As the completion of the charts required some time for reflection, I mailed the
charts electronically to the participants in advance with the intention that they could have the
information ready prior to our talk. In our interviews, I began with a discussion about the
completed information with them, focusing on what precisely happened in the events. It
should be noted that even though the charts entailed some scales and numbers, they were not
meant to provide any statistical reference. They were instead approximate indexes to indicate
whether there was a perceived change of confidence and meanwhile, to lend a scale to
compare the significance of and degree of reactions to particular interactive situations. This
part of data collection was thus intended for capturing the stories of interaction created
through linking certain events together in a particular sequence across a time period.
The second part of the interview involved a more extended talk guided by a list of
semi-structured questions about the general background of the participants, in particular, their
life experiences at different stages that have been interlocked with English language within
both Chinese and Australian linguistic and sociocultural contexts. The topics included
previous English learning experiences particularly in relation to memorable events or persons,
place or importance of English in the occupation in the home country, preparations for
coming to Australia, language and life challenges, and processes of appropriation as speakers
of English in Australia (see Appendix B for the complete list of interview questions 1). These
aspects of information were important in that they complemented the micro-analyses at the
level of interaction exchange, assisting in constructing a more complete version of the
communicative events. This way of thinking in study design accords with opinions expressed
by researchers such as Block (2007) that extra-interactional factors(e.g., the biography of the

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individual language learner, her or his membership in different communities of practice) were
accountable for more profound understanding of any potential language acquisition activities.
The interviews were audio taped with a mini tape recorder and transcribed to a
computer for data analysis. The interview with each participant lasted approximately two and
a half hours. As to the coding and analysis of the data, I relied on a manual approach,
focusing initially on the identification of common themes. As my research questions asked
how the learners perceived their self-confidence through both positive and negative events, I
first constructed a table file that contained all the interactive events horizontally and the
themes of feelings and potential causes of the feelings vertically. However, in this process of
analysis, an emergent theme arose relating to the great individual variations in the ways in
which they selected and interpreted the events. In order not to run the risk of missing the
idiosyncratic characteristics of each learner through the identification of common themes, I
constructed separate individual files in which I brought together the historically different
beliefs and attitudes of the learners about learning English and the consequent learning
behaviours and outcomes. This step shaped the final way in which the data was presented in
different cases.

Findings
Specific to the focus of this paper, in exploring the explanation that accounts for increased or
decreased confidence of the learners, both external factors such as power relations in specific
contexts of interaction and internal factors(i.e., the learners’ previously established L2
identities shaped along their paths of investment in learning English) arise as relevant.
Regarding internal factors, it was found that the learners would seem to perceive more
confidence if their previously established L2 identities were confirmed. To understand what
their previously established L2 identities are, a description of the learners’ earlier language
development was necessary. In consideration of the great amount of individual characteristics
manifested in the overall language development processes of the two learners including their
new learning experiences in Australia, the findings are organized into two separate stories. In
each story, I begin with a description of the nature of the learner’s investment in learning
English and forming a relationship to English, using a narrative approach. After that, I show
how the relationship prepared her for the transition to Australia and played an important part
in her adjustments to the new learning environment. I also cast analyses on the roles of
context and power relations in specific interactions.

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Yolanda’s story
English and a „success identity' in China
Upon reflection of past experiences of engagement with English, Yolanda delineated a
learning trajectory on which English was associated with consistent success in learning, and
accordingly mediated an identity central to Yolanda’s sense of self in a Chinese sociocultural
context. At all stages of learning as a student Yolanda excelled at English. She ascribed this
outcome to being in a good school where she had received continuing support from good
teachers and also being inspired by a wise and encouraging friend who made her see the
importance of English for creating a brighter future. Despite this claim of external influences,
Yolanda was highly motivated mainly because she came to appreciate what she had become
through English in the eyes of others in relation to the larger Chinese society. By doing well
at English, she felt she was establishing both a public and a personal image of being smart,
capable and successful. On a personal level, she also discovered that English opened a door
to new and wonderful things that used to exist only in books or movies, and that through
English she felt more culturally enriched and spiritually liberated. When she became a
professional teacher of English, English was affiliated with a symbol of authority and a sign
of control. When asked about how confident she felt about her work, she responded:
When I was in China, I felt fairly confident about myself because firstly as a
university lecturer I had received years of formal language training. Secondly
English was used mostly within the classroom context and even when I was
invited to be an interpreter occasionally, English was all under my control and
I felt like I was using English in an authoritative way.
On the whole, as a result of strong investment, English seemed to have created for
Yolanda access to multiple symbolic resources such as a broad social recognition, a good
profession and undoubted legitimacy in using English in China. It validated her sense of
being to the extent that she came to develop a strong ‗success identity’ in relation to English
which inherently pertained to her social identity in the Chinese sociocultural context. She was
therefore technically, economically and socio-politically empowered by English.

Identity issue in Australia

However, in moving to Australia, Yolanda perceived tremendous challenges in her sojourn
mainly as a result of the change in her social status from a professional teacher of English to
an international student and also the uprooting from the familiar Chinese sociocultural

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context. Yolanda summarized the consequences of such changes for her feeling of self as a
non-native speaker of English as follows:
After coming to Australia, a few changes took place for us non-native speakers of
English. First linguistically speaking, people with whom we communicate, have
a much higher natural advantage over us as native speakers of English. Second,
their knowledge base and culture gave them the unquestionable authority that,
we, as students, would certainly not dare to challenge. From every aspect of the
language issue, they [English native-speaker] are the authority, and we are
students. It is definite that we would feel lacking in confidence in communication
with them. Thirdly, from the psychological perspective, we would feel nervous
and anxious when we could not understand what the native speaker said. The
sense of anxiety would further prevent us from reacting appropriately. Then we
would worry that the English speaking interlocutor might have perceived us as
stupid.
In this extract, Yolanda pronounced the potential linguistic, cultural and socio-political
disadvantages L2 learners were bound to encounter. Embedded in her pronouncement was
perception of severely reduced competence and a strong sense of powerlessness of not being
a legitimate speaker of English because of her non-native speaking status and a peripheral
role as a minority student. She also revealed substantial emotional vulnerability and lack of
confidence. The expression of various challenges projected a strikingly altered way of
positioning herself under the influence of a different social cultural context, indicating that
her identity, which was developed against the Chinese sociocultural context, was under
serious threat in Australia.

Self-confidence at specific sites of interaction

Turning to the context of more specific interactions between Yolanda and her native English-
speaking interlocutors in Australia, I was mindful that interactions as such were also in nature
interpersonal contacts at the site of intercultural encounters. Broadly speaking, a diverse
range of variables from an intercultural communication perspective could be inferred as
accounting for communicative effectiveness, which consequently will impact on the L2
speaker’s senses of confidence and comfort in the communication (e.g., Gudykunst, Ting-
Toomey, & Nishida, 1996; Kim, 2001; Ting-Toomey, 1999).Yet, as much enlightened by the
postulation that individuals bring their ‗self-image’ to any type of cross cultural

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communicative encounter (Ting-Toomey, 1999), my intention was to expound on how a ‗self
image’ shaped through previous English learning experiences relate to the individual’s
perception of language competence and sense of confidence from the perspective of L2
learning.
Yolanda recalled two interactive situations in which she felt most confident when her
competence in using English was asserted and her self-image of being a competent speaker of
English, a capable and useful person seemed to be reinforced. Both events were
contextualized in an informal and non-academic setting. In the first situation described by
Yolanda, she was asked to act as a language mediator by the chair of Chinese student
association.
Since my speciality is language, it feels as if I were always the head of a team
[the Chinese student association]. I could always fix up problems for him[the
chair of the association] and settle the matters appropriately by making the
Australian communicator happy as well. This made me feel confident and good
about myself.
This reflection does not reveal information about the very interactive moment when Yolanda
used English to negotiate a desired communicative result. Nor is the role and attitude of her
interlocutor indicated. However, the fact that this particular interactive situation was selected
as memorable revealed the very reasons that explain the sources of her self-confidence in her
terms. Here a close tie is seen between language application and Yolanda’s general social
image as a ‗head’ or ‗leader’. In resemblance to her learning experiences in China, in this
context English appeared to have opened up chances for her to be in a position where she
could claim her images of self as a smart and capable person, thus maintaining a high level of
self-confidence. The second event involves the supportive role of her interlocutor,
contributing to perception of being a competent L2 user in the interaction. Again, the
following description of gaining control in the conversation indicates the importance of
statutory legitimacy with which she was familiar in China:
I remember speaking most fluently with a truck driver who was also a friend of
ours when he took us out for a picnic. My friend and I were even amazed at our
own language fluency. He is a local and spoke quite fast. In our communication,
I could be in control of the topics and there was nothing that blocked me
psychologically. We felt extremely relaxed as we knew, even if we made mistakes
in our talk, there wouldn’t be any bad consequences.

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As to the negative experiences of social interaction in Australia, Yolanda first recalled a very
short encounter with a receptionist at the faculty where she was studying:
I was searching for the pigeon hole of a lecturer to drop in a letter. When I
couldn’t find it immediately by myself, the receptionist reached out from her
door asking „what are you doing here’ in an apparently reproaching tone.
Hearing that, I was speechless as I expected her to say „can I help you’ instead.
The stiffness in her attitude and her unfriendly facial expression made me feel as
if I were messing around like I had nothing else to do. I felt very disturbed and
did not want to communicate with her except telling her what I was doing. An
interaction like this felt rather unpleasant.
As shown in this excerpt, due to the bad manners of the interlocutor, Yolanda felt wrongly
treated and overpowered, and was unable to respond in the way she had wanted in the context
where she was an unimportant student. Although it is difficult to predict what might have
happened had Yolanda adopted another social role, it is apparent that being conscious of her
lower status as a student and a non-native speaker of English, Yolanda was overshadowed by
her interlocutor’s exercise of power at this given moment in the given setting. Remaining in
Yolanda’s memory as a highly uncomfortable experience, this incident reminds us of the
notion of an implicit social power and the influence of such power on second language
learners’ feelings of being in the right place to use the right language to let their voice and
claims be heard.
In drawing a link between lack of confidence, the attitude of the interlocutors and an
implicit power, Yolanda’s description of the next event lends even stronger evidence for
understanding “how relations of power affect social interaction between second language
learners and target language speakers” and additionally the self-confidence of L2 learners
(Norton Peirce, 1995, p.12):
I heard that some books were on sale at the bookshop, $10 a box but when I
picked up my books in a little larger box and went to pay at the cashier, the shop
assistant looked very unhappy and asked for $15. As I was unaware of the price
difference depending on the size of the box, I asked her why. She was kind of a
difficult person to approach – she spoke very fast with a strong Australian accent.
What made me feel most uncomfortable was her attitude, she looked askance at
me implying a racial discrimination towards Chinese. Of course I cannot accuse
her of being a’ racist’ because she did not abuse me verbally. This encounter
with her totally discouraged me and I ended up stumbling over my words when I
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 spoke with her. When I got back home I felt regretful, thinking I should have said
this and that to argue with her, but I was unable to do so as it felt quite tense in
the situation.
This short conversation exerted a direct negative influence on Yolanda’s feelings about her
language competence and fluency. ‗Stumbling over her words’ and leaving the interactive
scene with anger and frustration denote her struggles related not only to actual language
performance but also a sense of defencelessness. Clearly, with the strong perception that her
being Chinese was an issue for her interlocutor in the exchange of conversation, Yolanda
failed to employ English appropriately to respond to the challenge.
Apart from the presence of an alleged abuse of power relations, this event also reflects
the negative influences of Yolanda’s role change on her sense of self as a non-native speaker
of English. In China she was a mainstream member having English as a plus. Years of
investment in learning English as well as her social status as a professional teacher of English
forged for her a ‗success identity’ which foregrounded her sense of self in the Chinese EFL
sociocultural context. In moving to Australia, she became a minority member and an
international student. Although her non-native speaking status remained unchanged, her
senses of ownership and legitimacy were heavily reduced because of the perception of
disadvantages triggered by her marginal role in Australia. The nature of the above two
interactive experiences indicates that second language development is a process in which,
learners like Yolanda exchange utterances through a ‗voice’. According to Bakhtin (1986,
p.71), the voice implies “a socially situated speaking person and encompasses such factors as
a speaking person’s perspective, world view, values and relationship to the voices of others”.
Hall (1997, p. 218) summarizes this as follows:
“Acquiring a language or ‗becoming competent’ is not a matter of learning to
speak. It is a matter of developing a range of voices, of learning to (re)construct
utterances for our own purposes within and through our social identities, in the
many and varied interactive practices through which we live our lives.”

Fiona’s story
English and self identity in China
Fiona was a few years younger than Yolanda but had very similar background to that of
Yolanda and was also sojourning in Australia for her doctorate. They were both recipients of
a full research scholarship. Prior to the then sojourn in Australia, they had both been to
Australia on a short exchange program. However, in spite of the broad similarities Fiona
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shared with Yolanda under the umbrellas of academic success and path of career
development, Fiona’s experiences of engagement with English in China revealed a different
conceptualization of what she was looking for in and through English.
During Fiona’s learning in China when she was a student, what emerged as salient
was an insistent recognition of her sense of connection with three English teachers. Through
those stories of connection, Fiona unveiled a learning path in which English was associated
with increasing consciousness of bonding and connecting to an English-speaking community
in search of an enriched sense of self as a bilingual. From the first teacher, Fiona learnt to be
motivated in order to live up to the expectation of the teacher. The second teacher whom she
met at the university was a young woman from Britain. Because of small age difference and
Fiona’s particularly good performance in her class, they interacted tremendously well and it
was through those interactions that Fiona’s horizon of English learning was substantially
expanded, as indicated in the following excerpts from her interview:
I was attracted to native English speakers after my contact with that foreign
teacher, for they offered me a whole new different perspective on life. Sometimes
their words really cracked me up. They had a different way to look at the world
and their worldview differed from ours too. I think I personally became more
open-minded, more talkative and had a better sense of humour as a result of the
communication with them.
Thus, her close affiliation with that teacher seemed to have generated an entirely new
perspective for Fiona to look beyond the basic functional role of English and led to the
discovery of a new sense of self for her. Unlike Yolanda whose investment was kept high
because English was essential to the construction of her social identity, Fiona seemed to
emphasize her personal enjoyment of being able to use English to enter into the unknown
world of native English speaking people. She added:
They [native speakers of English] brought a variety of new things. I longed to
understand them – why are they like this; why are we different from them; and
what are the best ways to promote better communication with them and better
understanding of each other? I was very much intrigued by these questions.
At this point Fiona had developed an eagerness for and curiosity about seeking her relations
to English-speaking people for the purposes of cultivating and embracing a more open-
minded and interesting personality of her own. These interests indicate that Fiona’s goal of
learning was no longer restricted to improving language competence, but expanded to involve
a cultural sensitivity and awareness. She also hinted at looking for ways through which she
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could foster a level of flexibility and find the ‗fit’ in communication with people from
different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. As Fiona went on with her study at the
postgraduate level, this goal of learning was further strengthened when she met a professor
who represented an ideal model of a Chinese/English bilingual in Fiona’s eyes. What the
professor demonstrated regarding his ability in striking a balance in himself between the two
languages and cultures had a profound effect on Fiona who then set out to find her own “third
place”(Kramsch, 1993). When it came to her professional practice in China, Fiona
commented:
In my teaching, I felt very comfortable with my English. I successfully organized
an Australian International Conference in my university. I evenreceived a letter
of appreciation from the Consul in charge of China-Australia cultural exchanges
who commented that it was the most successful event he had ever seen.
In short, through Fiona’s reflection of significant experiences of learning in China, we see
that for Fiona, being as equally a successful learner of English as Yolanda, the core of her
English language development centred around her interest in finding and building up a
connection to English and the English-speaking world after her being inspired by people to
whom she felt connected. This seems to have contributed to a heightened understanding of
who she wanted to become through English. In contrast to Yolanda whose sense of
ownership was located in her competence in English with which she constructed a highly
regarded social image, Fiona seemed to have internalised English as a vital part of herself on
her journey for more deepened self exploration. English was thus transformed from a foreign
language to the language of her inner self, opening up opportunities to imagined communities
(Pavlenko & Norton, 2007). Because of this positioning, the other social embodiments
English might carry, as it did for Yolanda, became deconstructed. Consequently, her self-
confidence in using English remained high and was not as context dependent as it was for
Yolanda.

Continuity in transition to Australia

In coming to Australia, contrary to Yolanda, Fiona came across few surprises and little
challenge to her sense of confidence. Whereas Yolanda seemed to suffer from identity
disequilibrium triggered by the loss of social identity which was a prominent part of her sense
of self in moving from China to Australia, Fiona demonstrated a sense of continuity in
Australia in that she could continue relating to native speakers of English as she did in China.

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The reasons why Fiona did not feel significantly challenged were largely related to her sense
of inner connectedness to English and the development of an intercultural mindset, as
illustrated in the following:
I am inclined to think of culture shock as an interesting intercultural incident. I
view it as an interesting contrast rather than a blow to myself. I would ponder
these incidents in my mind making interesting comparison between our
perspective and their perspective and find out where misunderstandings lie.
This excerpt displays Fiona’s attitudes of curiosity and openness towards what are usually
regarded as stressful experiences by people who move from one culture to another within a
short period of time. In contrast to feelings of loss, tension and identity disorientation
potentially brought about by culture shock, a sense of gain emerged for Fiona as a result of
her willingness to analyze conflicting intercultural encounters from the viewpoint of the
others with whom she was engaging (Byram, 1997).

Self-confidence at specific sites of interaction

In view of memories of any significant interactive events in which she felt confident, Fiona
said:
It is when I chat with friends whom I feel close to. It feels very natural especially
when we talk about some very interesting things. I feel very good talking in
English when I don’t think there is barrier between us.
As discussed earlier, Fiona’s goal in learning English was not just to master language skills.
Rather, English seemed to bear much more personal meanings for her and she desired to learn
English as effectively as possible so that she could relate to other people meaningfully and
build up a more open-minded and interesting personality. In an interactive event as this,
Fiona was evidently able to relate to the person she talked to in a comfortable,
communicative setting, which resulted in her feeling of confidence about her English.
Regarding the negative experiences, Fiona did not remember any extreme examples in
the way that Yolanda did. However in her interaction with her supervisor, she noticed the
presence of power relations, as in:
I can never converse fluently with my supervisor especially when I talk about my
research. I could have expressed myself more fluently, but she was not a kind of
encouraging and smiling person and we did not have an open atmosphere for
our talk. It’s her style and I am not saying that her style is not good but this style

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 did not suit me. I knew from her other research students that they felt the same.
Every time after the meeting, girls needed to go shopping and boys went out for
drinks to release pressure and tension.
Even though she was able to draw a line between her feeling of anxiety and unsatisfactory
language performance at that moment and her general self-confidence, the consequence of
that power relation was far less than constructive. However, being aware that she was not the
only one who felt that way, incident like this did not make her question her language
competence and proficiency.

Conclusion
In this paper I have explored the meaning-making processes of two advanced learners of
English in appropriating senses of confidence within discursive interactive contexts that
involved native English speaking Australian interlocutors. The findings have shown that first,
the learners perceived both heightened and decreased confidence in the self-nominated
interactive events. Second, those perceptions were shaped under the influences of a number
of factors such as the attitude of interlocutors in specific interactive situations and the internal
images of self held by the learners. Through the analyses of the factors determining the
learners’ perception of self-confidence, I have demonstrated, in support of Norton (2000),
that self-confidence is a dynamic, socially constructed conception grounded within the lived
experiences of language learners, subject to power relations in specific contexts of interaction.
Moreover, by drawing an emergent link between self-confidence reported at specific sites of
interaction and the learners’ past learning experiences, which led to the discussion about the
learning biographies of the learners, I have shown the diverse and complex ways in which the
learners invested in learning and consequently developed distinct L2 identities significant to
their language development from China to Australia. From the ways English hastouched their
identities, cultures, emotions and personalities, we hear voices about their innermost
aspirations, awareness and newly expanded identities, but we also see signs of ambivalence,
constraints and conflicts. These aspects point to the very interwoven relationship between
language, investment and identity mediated through the dialectic relations between learners
and various worlds and experiences they inhabit (Ricento, 2005).
In general, the findings have highlighted the theoretical advantage and value of the
notion of investment for understanding how L2 learning has created and engaged the
identities of learners in a dynamic manner. Morgan(2007, p.1041) commented that “the

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multiplicity and complexity of Norton’s construct of investment foregrounds heterogeneity
and it reminds us that while culture is important, it is not necessarily primary, separable, or
more salient than other experiences and desires”. As shown from the two case studies,
although Yolanda and Fiona learned English under the same educational conditions within
same sociocultural contexts, there exist tremendous differences in the way they engaged with
English with their own individual goals and desires. It is precisely through their “socially and
historically constructed relationships” (Norton Peirce, 1995, p.17) to English that we are able
to see “how they experienced learning, used someone else’s language” and ultimately learned
to appropriate the language to expand their horizons and identities (Kramsch, 2006, p.99,
orginal italics).
Yolanda’s case presents a classic example of how investment in learning English in
China created for her a symbolic capital, an identity intimately tied to her social position in
the Chinese sociocultural context. An interesting phenomenon in her case is that English
appeared to be the vehicle through which she both gained access and was denied access
across two different sociocultural contexts. This confirms that language is a complex social
practice closely bound to power relations and the definition of learner identities. For Fiona,
her investment produced a more flexible identity linked to “an imagined
community”(Pavlenko & Norton, 2007), the community of native speakers of English beyond
her immediate social network in China. Her imagined positive connection with and
orientation towards such an imagined community not only helped her to appropriate
meanings of English language, but created an identity that allowed her to transcend the
immediate environment and engage with the desired community. Consequently, when she
moved into the actual target community of practice, she experienced a strong sense of
continuity. In conclusion, while I acknowledge that further investigation is needed before
these patterns can be generalized, this study has enhanced our understanding of self-
confidence as a social phenomenon and of L2 learning as an individually dynamic,
continuing as well as accumulative process of investment.

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