Visiting the studies of resilience in language learning: From concepts to themes

Abstract

Resilience, as a positive personal trait, has been a topic of hot debate in the field of general education with the booming perspective of positive psychology. The exploration of learner resilience is conducive to understanding how learners grapple with setbacks, positively adapt, and function well in the presence of challenging situations. To date, some attention is paid to the structure of learner resilience, its relationships with other psychological variables, and its impacts on academic achievement. However, research on the overall profile of resilience in the field of foreign language (FL) or second language (L2) from a holistic and systematic perspective is still lacking. Against this backdrop, the current study reviewed and synthesized research evidence on resilience in the FL/L2 learning context. Specifically, 27 high-quality empirical studies published between 2017 and 2023 were selected, and then they were analyzed in terms of substantive characteristics of the literature and research participants, models of resilience, methodological features, and research foci. The results revealed a steady increase in language learner resilience research and displayed the detailed distribution of reviewed articles in publication year and sources as well as participants' educational backgrounds. Moreover, the conceptualization of resilience displayed complex and diverse features, the quantitative approach took a dominant position in the reviewed literature, and resilience models from psychology were widely utilized in language learner resilience research directly or indirectly. Finally, the implications of these findings were discussed for the further development of language learner resilience research.