Extroversion and Introversion in Second Language Acquisition

马媛

Abstract：Second language acquisition is a process that can be influenced by several factors，one of which is the learners personality.This paper aims at drawing attention to how extroversion and introversion affect studentsperformance while acquiring a second language and whether extroverted students acquire a second language better than introverted students.Results showed that extroversion and introversion influence the way that students perform while acquiring a second language.Besides，extroverted students dont acquire a second language better than introverted students.It is true that extroversion helps a lot to improve the acquisition of communicative competence，but it does not mean that an introverted student has no chance to succeed in second language acquisition.Finally，it is important for a teacher to recognize studentspersonality in order to use suitable teaching methods.The study can give some implications for teaching second language.

Keywords：Extroversion;introversion;second language learning

Introduction

People generally possess the features of both introversion and extroversion and perform them in different situations through daily lives，but usually one of personalities dominates their behavior，which can be seen in work preferences and reactions to stress.Introverted people mainly concentrated on the internal world of thoughts and ideas，while extroverted ones focused on the external surroundings of people and activities.

Research states that extroversion and introversion are personality characteristics which can influence second language（L2）learning in a positive or negative way depending on the measured aspect. Ellis reported extraverted learners do better in acquiring basic interpersonal communication skills，having more opportunities to practice， receive more inputs. However，introverted learners prefer to develop cognitive academic language proficiency（CALP），because they spend more time reading，writing and trying to produce accurate language.This paper intended to discuss the relationship between extroversion/introversion and second language acquisition，which will give some suggestions for teaching second language.

Theory and Analysis

The development of personality

A person is born an individual，but without a personality.Personality is built after one is born.Some potential environmental influences and physical factors contribute to shape personality.Learners of one personality type are not necessarily more successful at language learning than learners of the other，which is also supported by Ellis.Nevertheless，it is suggested to devote some efforts to the improvement of personality which can help learn second language better.15329DEB-A2F5-4128-AEDF-3E5CA0F2A198

Comparison of learning styles of extroverts and introverts

Burruss and Kaenzig  claimed that extroverts and introverts need different kinds of instructions.Introverts prefer to work on their own than in groups，they do not like being in the center of attention and need time and space to complete tasks.Many of them enjoy lectures and deductive methods of teaching.They think carefully before speaking，do not like sharing their inner thoughts with others unless they know them well.And they prefer writing than speaking，which makes oral skills more difficult to acquire.

Extroverts require high stimulation，cooperating with others and movement in order to learn.They also like open discussions and discovery activities.They are not afraid of making mistakes and processing the language.Their personality traits facilitate the development of general oral communicative competence，which requires face to face interaction.

As is mentioned above，extroverts are thought to be sociable to have more opportunities to interact with English speakers than introverts，thus have more language input and output.However，input is far from enough ensuring success of language learning.What is entailed is “intake”，that is，the particular amount of an input that learners successfully process to build up internal understanding of the language，the limited amount of comprehensible part of the “input”.And those incomprehensible part can only be regarded as “noise”.The introverts of good learners，on account of their personality，are not sociable and talkative，but seem not to be influenced by the learning environment in China.Input cannot only be obtained through oral communicative interaction，and it can also be obtained from reading.

Implications for teaching second language

Teachers should be aware of personality characteristics among learners and use a great variety if teaching methods in order to achieve the best results.Strategies for introverts used in the classroom should include： small group interaction，relaxed atmosphere，independent studies and role-plays.Extroverts acquire language through social interaction and thus like activities in which they can interact with peers to gain a better understanding.Students need to know what they are expected to do and have suitable conditions to concentrate.

Conclusion

Extroverts and introverts have different challenges in second language learning.The central difference between extroverts and introverts is how they think.Extroversion and introversion are important factors in the acquisition of a second language，but all the success depends on how hard you work and how much time you spend on it.As teachers，it is significant to recognize studentspersonality in order to supply them with suitable instructions and create the accurate atmosphere for learning.

References

[1]Burruss，J.D.and L.Kaenzig.1999.“Introversion：The Often Forgotten Factor Impacting the Gifted”，2006-03-11.

[2] Myers，I.B.and P.B.Myers，1980.Gifts differing. Palo Alto，CA：Consulting Psychologists Press.

[3]Ellis，R. 2008. The Study of Second Language Acquisition （2nd ed.）.Oxford：Oxford University Press.

[4]Ellis，R. 1994. The Study of Second Language Acquisition.Oxford：Oxford University Press.

[5]Larsen-Freeman D.and M.H.Long.（1991）.An Introduction to Second Language Acquisition Research.Beijing：Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press.15329DEB-A2F5-4128-AEDF-3E5CA0F2A198