Classroom social climate, self-determined motivation, willingness to communicate, and achievement: A study of structural relationships in instructed second language settings Hye-Kyoung Joe a , Phil Hiver a, ⁎, Ali H. Al-Hoorie b,c a International Graduate School of English, Department of ELT, 89 Yangjae-daero 81-gil, Gangdong-gu, Seoul 05407, Republic of Korea b University of Nottingham, School of English, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdom c Jubail Industrial College, The English Language Institute, Jubail Industrial City 31961, P. O. Box 10099, Saudi Arabia abstract article info Article history: Received 23 January 2016 Received in revised form 14 November 2016 Accepted 18 November 2016 Available online xxxx The purpose of this study is to integrate three related theoretical frameworks—classroom social climate, self-determination theory (SDT), and L2 willingness to communicate (WTC)—and investigate connections between key individual and situational factors for motivation and L2 achievement in a formal secondary- school setting in Korea (N = 381). We propose a model of the impact of the classroom social climate on second- ary school L2 learners' self-determined motivation and WTC, before extending our analysis to the effect of these individual and contextual factors on L2 achievement. Structural equation modeling showed that self-determined motivation was predicted by satisfaction of basic psychological needs (i.e., autonomy, competence, and related- ness), which are in turn predicted by positive classroom social climate. WTC was predicted strongly by satisfac- tion of basic psychological needs, and weakly by perceived competence and identified regulation, but not by intrinsic motivation. L2 achievement was initially predicted significantly by identified regulation and perceived competence, but after controlling for prior achievement only perceived competence remained a significant, but weak (β = 0.07), predictor. These findings support the notion that context is an empirically relevant frame of reference for the study of individual factors, and highlight the impact a classroom environment exerts on impor- tant L2 learning outcomes. However, our findings also underscore the work remaining in the L2 learning field to uncover robust predictors of L2 achievement. We hope this study will stimulate further research into the situated and interrelated nature of motivation, WTC, and achievement that will both consolidate and refine current the- oretical and empirical insights. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Keywords: Basic psychological needs Classroom social climate Self-determination theory L2 willingness to communicate L2 achievement 1. Introduction One cannot think of successful second or foreign language (L2) de- velopment occurring without at least some form of motivation on the part of the learner (Dörnyei & Ryan, 2015). Motivation governs the di- rection and magnitude of behavioral choices regarding what goals to avoid or pursue (Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2011), and provides an indication of the quality and quantity of goal-directed effort. As such, the question of how to get and keep learners motivated through the dips and peaks of language development may be a priority of much of L2 instruction. However, the majority of L2 learning worldwide occurs in formal class- room settings involving long hours of intense preparation to succeed in compulsory examinations. Without debating the relative merit of these characteristics, we believe this indicates that learners are presented with little need to use the target language apart from achieving good grades. Thus, while there may be learners whose L2 learning behavior is driven by externally-regulated motives, the notion of individual voli- tional action to communicate in the L2—considered one of the most de- sirable outcomes of learning a second language—is arguably absent from these settings (MacIntyre, 2007). A longstanding emphasis within this field is a focus on contextual features of the L2 classroom, conditions which are thought to play a key part in initiating and sustaining L2 learning motivation due to the distributed nature (i.e., between people) of engagement and goal-di- rected behavior in classrooms (Wedell & Malderez, 2013). The notion that classrooms have distinct psychological environments, which may in turn affect individuals' thought and action, has been around for the better part of a century (Greeno, 2015). In the realm of L2 learning and use, this is even more pronounced because of the understanding that learner characteristics, behavior, and development can be influ- enced by various competing temporal and situational factors (e.g., Batstone, 2010; Kramsch, 2008; Larsen-Freeman, 2015; van Lier, 2004). Integrating various situative and individual constructs or pro- cesses offers a way to examine learning and development beyond the individual, thus explaining why “individuals take up practices in Learning and Individual Differences 53 (2017) 133–144 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail address: philiphiver@igse.ac.kr (P. Hiver). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2016.11.005 1041-6080/© 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Learning and Individual Differences journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/lindif