L2 teacher motivation/autonomy as complex systems: Across the boundaries of L2 classrooms in East Asia

L2 teacher motivation is an area that merits much more attention, and many scholars have started to seek out a better understanding of the dynamics of teacher motivation. Investigating teachers’ personal and contextual perspectives by using a longitudinal, ethnographic research design is one approach to exploring L2 teacher motivation. In this chapter, I use complex dynamic systems theory (CDST) as a basis to investigate the L2 teacher motivation of three EFL teachers in conjunction with their L2 teacher autonomy. Classroom observations were carried out in three different countries in East Asia for timescales of 10 months to 9 years. The qualitative data analysis demonstrates that even in similar socio/cultural classroom contexts in East Asia, each English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher’s L2 teacher motivation transitions within their attractor states, crossing different systems and following a unique trajectory. I also document each EFL teacher’s L2 teacher autonomy in each attractor state. Findings suggest future research directions to establish further the relevance of CDST for L2 teacher motivation studies.