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The complex pattern study has an elaborate underlying theoretical construct and has undergone extensive field-testing and validation at the Foreign Service Institute. Therefore it represents a serious attempt to reconceptualize cognitive styles in the service of language learning and warrants a closer inspection. The E&L Construct, as Ehrman and Leaver have named their new system, is similar to Riding’s theory in that it reorganizes a number of established style dimensions under a new, comprehensive, and parsimonious construct. However, unlike Riding’s taxonomy, here only one superordinate style dimension is provided, with the two poles labeled ectasis and synopsis. The main difference between the two extremes is that an ectenic learner wants or needs conscious control over the learning process, whereas a synoptic learner leaves more to preconscious or unconscious processing.  The complete system is made up of 10 subdimensions, and many of those are similar to the ones target...

  The factor that would have been traditionally identified as ‘integrativeness’ played a key role in mediating the effects of all the other attitudinal/motivational variables on two criterion measures related to motivated learning behavior, intended effort and language choice. Curiously, the immediate antecedents of this latent variable were attitudes toward L2 speakers/community and instrumentality; thus, our results indicated that ‘integrativeness’ was closely associated with two very different variables, faceless pragmatic incentives and personal attitudes toward members of the L2 community. I believe that applying the ‘self’ framework just described offers a good explanation of our findings. Looking at ‘integrativeness’ from the self-perspective, the concept can be conceived of as the L2-specific facet of one’s ideal self: If one’s ideal self is associated with the mastery of an L2, that is, if the person that we would like to become is proficient in the L2, we can be describ...