Abstract:

This study sought to uncover the demotivating factors in learning English language among Iranian university students. In so doing, from the population of students studying at Islamic Azad University master students of teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) and Clinical psychology (CP) were selected based on a purposive sampling method. To uncover the most frequent demotivating factors in learning English, the subjects were asked to fill out a translated version of a demotivating questionnaire developed by Sakai and Kikuchi (2009). In addition, a semi-structured interview was conducted to uncover what factors can help students overcome their demotivation. The findings revealed a number of demotivating factors in learning English such as the size of classroom, teachers' behavior, inadequate use of digital apparatus, and the lack of communication activities to name a few. In addition, some suggestions were proposed to overcome the dark side of motivation in learning English. Knowing how students perceive the demotivating factors may help teachers, policy makers, and syllabus designers to take into account factors promoting the success and the rate of second language learning as general and learning English at university in particular.

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