Impact of cultural motivations and the sense of belonging to target community on Learning Arabic based on Brunner’s LASS theory : A study on Iran Language Institute Students

Need is an impulsive force creating motivation for a person to develop a certain behavior and achieve a goal. A person is normally aware of the motivations directing him/her to learn a second language. Language learning is a cognitive process involving internal processing of information. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the need to belong to a social group is one of the basic psychological needs of individuals. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of social community members, attitudes and orientations of a cultural society on language learning. In this study, cultural motivation and the need to be accepted by the target group was considered to be the fundamental factor for language learning. Using Bruner’s approach, the study sought to answer the extent to which learners’ sense of belonging and cultural-acquisition motivation can increase the level of language learning among ILI (Iran language learning institute). Bruner believes that learning is a discovery process through active search and the more a learner knows about the target culture, the more sense of belonging about target culture is created and higher level of abilities will be developed to learn a second language. Sample of this study included Iran language learning institute (ILI) students at advanced level of proficiency. Through purposeful sampling method, 30 students were selected for data collection. Results indicated that the motivation circle will be complete and meaningful if a person finds himself in a proper condition to learn about the culture and feels the sense of belonging. Results of this study showed that an unpredictable atmosphere for learners that their language learning motivation does not fall in Maslow’s pyramid. In general, being deprived from the target community and sense of belonging and believing that learning Arabic can fulfil a tangible need play a significant role in learning this language.