Literature Review Practice

Literature Review Practice
1. Read the 3 abstracts and find out the similarities and differences.
Abstract 1:
The purpose of this study was to investigate Vietnamese non-English majors' motivation to learn English as a
foreign language (EFL) based on the activity theory perspective. The participants included 1,565 students with
at least one semester of university-level English, of whom 13 participated in the semi-structured interviews. The
data was collected using the five-point Likert scale motivation and desire surveys with 16 items and individual
face-to-face interviews. The results from the quantitative and qualitative strands indicated that the participants
were highly motivated to learn English. The sources of such motivation included obtaining a good job in the
future, achieving success in academic studies, maintaining effective communications with foreigners, having
personal enjoyment, and being influenced by other people. In addition, they were not only more internally
(rather than externally) motivated, but they also demonstrated strong motivational intensity to learn English and
enhance their language competence. Moreover, there was a strong positive relationship between internal
motivation and motivational intensity, whereas there was a weak positive correlation between external
motivation and motivational intensity. Activity theory was used as a lens to elaborate on the discussion of
learners’ motivation in this study. The findings of the current study can be used by stakeholders, such as EFL
educators, decision-makers and curriculum developers, to understand more about their students in terms of
psychological issues and to design appropriate programs that can increase their learning motivation.
Abstract 2:
Despite the plethora of literature examining higher education students’ motivation to learn a second language, it
is not known if students who choose to study English as their major differ from those who are required to study
English as the minor component of their wider degree. Drawing on self-determination theory, this paper reports
on the findings of a quantitative study designed to investigate the types of motivation demonstrated by English
major (n = 180) and non-English major students (n = 242), and their levels of effort expended in learning
English in a Vietnamese university. The findings revealed that both groups demonstrated high levels of
motivation to learn English to prepare for their future profession. English major students felt more intrinsically
motivated and less obligated to learn English. In addition, for both groups, intrinsically motivated students
invested the highest levels of effort in learning English. This paper argues that it is imperative for lecturers to
foster students’ intrinsic aspirations to learn English to improve the quality of the teaching and learning of
English in Vietnamese higher education.
Abstract 3:
The aim of this quantitative research is to investigate how Tra Vinh University students think about what can
bring them motivation in learning General English. They were asked to choose their degree of consent on a
scale from 1 to 5. The survey used twenty-six questions focusing on three aspects: students' self-motivation,
language teachers' efforts to improve students' motivation and school's future motivational policies. The data
were collected from 60 first year non-English majors learning General English at beginning level (equivalent
Pre-A2-Common European Framework of Reference-CEFR). The findings showed positive results on the three
aspects. Students were much concerned with their basic knowledge of English, social needs, language teachers'
English knowledge, friendly language teachers, language teachers' varied teaching methodology, ventilated and
well-equipped classrooms, and necessary teams of academic advisors. These findings can be useful to both
language teachers and educators when considering their curriculum, teaching methodologies and designing
programs promoting English learning.
References
Nguyen, S. V., & Habók, A. (2021). Vietnamese non-English-major students’ motivation to learn English:
From activity theory perspective. Heliyon, 7(4), e06819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06819
Ngo, H., Spooner-Lane, R., & Mergler, A. (2015). A comparison of motivation to learn English between
English major and non-English major students in a Vietnamese university. Innovation in Language Learning
and Teaching, 11(2), 188-202. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2015.1094076
Khau, Anh & Huynh, Nhu. (2016). Motivation for Vietnamese Non-English Majors Learning General English
at Tra Vinh University.
2. Put the following citations under the correct topic
Topic Sentences
“Superhero comic books and television shows also demonize criminals and often c,e,h
focus on violent crime”
“Mass media can play important role in how people—particularly children— f,a,i
learn about crime and criminals.”
“Criminals are often depicted as being inherently bad and different from other b,g,d
people.”
a. Little research has examined the messages about criminality to which people are exposed at an early
age.
b. The criminal is ‘‘the public enemy,’’ “a monstrosity,” ‘‘morally repugnant,’’ and ‘‘a deadly threat to the
moral order’’ (Melossi 2000).
c. Based on their study of Superman and Batman comics, Vollum and Adkinson (2003) discerned that
criminals tended to represent a threat to social order and were motivated by money, power, or revenge.
d. The criminal is out-and-out bad or has a personal deficit that makes them act badly (Melossi 2000).
e. Wilson et al. (2002) analyzed data from National Television Violence Study and found that 97% of
superhero shows depicted violence.
f. Wilson et al. (2002) studied how violence is portrayed in children’s programs, disaggregating by genre
but not by protagonists and antagonists. They found that the most common motives depicted across
program types were personal gain, anger, and protection of life.
g. Cavender (2004) noted that in the 1970s, coinciding with the shift in political rhetoric, a shift in the
depiction of criminal offenders occurred, renewing the process of ‘‘othering’’ criminals. Criminal
offenders are cast as villains who personify the evil side of humanity.
h. In their analysis of best-selling comics and trade paperbacks, Phillips and Strobl (2006) found that
violent street crime was the theme most frequently present.
i. For people who have limited non-media sources of information about crime, like the general child
audience, the media becomes even more relevant for defining the socially constructed reality of crime
(Surette 2003).

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