The Sources of Demotivation in Learning English among Non-English Majors

Motivation is a key factor in learning in general and in second language learning in particular. Motivation has a dark side, “demotivation” that is the loss of existing motivation, which can lead to failure of students in second language learning. This study aimed at finding the most important demotivating factor(s) among Engineering and Humanities students in Iran. A modified form of Sakaii and Kikuchi’s demotivation questionnaire was administered to 300 university students (150 Humanities, 150 Engineering), from 7 universities of Iran (in Qom, Kashan, Tehran). The result of the study showed that the three factors “Learning contents, Materials Facilities”, and “The Teacher”, and “Attitude towards Second Language Learning” were the most important demotivating factors in both Engineering, and Humanities students . Significant differences between Humanities and Engineering students in demotivating factors were also found. The findings of this study can benefit material developers, English teachers and language planners.