LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching http://e-journal.usd.ac.id/index.php/LLT Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 597 GRADUATE STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION REGULATION STRATEGIES IN FACING ACADEMIC WRITING AMID COVID-19 PANDEMIC Kristian Florensio Wijaya and Niko Albert Setiawan Sanata Dharma University, Indonesia kristianwijaya500@gmail.com; niko.albert.setiawan@gmail.com correspondence: kristianwijaya500@gmail.com DOI: 10.24071/llt.v24i2.3142 received 22 February 2021; accepted 29 October 2021 Abstract To be more proficient and self-regulated, L2 academic writers, the deployment of motivation regulation strategies should be incorporated at the commencement of academic writing learning enterprises, particularly during this pandemic situation. According to previous studies, the establishment of robust motivation regulation strategies will potentially help L2 academic writers to better manage the ongoing writing learning dynamics and cope with varied upcoming challenges. Specifically, this study was conducted qualitatively by lending support from qualitative content analysis in order to offer more overarching findings derived from actual events experienced by the participants. To comply with this objectivity, two research instruments were also utilized in this study namely the Likert-Scale questionnaire and open-ended interviews. Further, the Likert-Scale questionnaire was administered via Google Forms to be filled out by 36 English education master students from batch 2018 and 2019, and the open-ended interview inquiries were sent through WhatsApp application in order to obtain the responses from the three random selected interviewees. Results from this study revealed that the majority of English education master students had successfully become more competent and resilient academic writers through five major streams of motivation regulation strategies namely interest enhancement, performance self-talk, mastery self-talk, self-consequating, and environmental structuring. Keywords: Motivation regulation strategies, academic writing, graduate students, Covid-19 pandemic Introduction Due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic since the beginning of March last year, all of the workforces are commissioned to undergo all of their working stuff at home in order to degrade the widespread of this disease. Without exception, educational sectors also bear a huge brunt from this pandemic since online learning trajectories are offered as one of the efficient solutions for educators and learners to continually experience meaningful learning dynamics as they experienced in classroom learning situations before. In ELT enterprises, there are various learning issues hampering the conduciveness in this learning mode due to mailto:niko.albert.setiawan@gmail.com LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 598 the lack of learners’ interest, motivation, parents’ support, and availability of internet connection. Allo (2020) discovered that the majority of EFL learners in Toraja Christian University enjoyed online ELT processes. Meanwhile, most of them extended extensive complaints due to the unstable and absence of internet connection. Similarly, Atmojo and Nugroho (2020) also found that the majority of EFL University learners encountered serious impediments in their online ELT dynamics due to teachers’ minimum experiences in designing appropriate and enjoyable learning materials for them. Pertaining to the aforementioned ELT issues caused by this unpredictable situation, it is worth highlighting here that graduate EFL learners also experience similar learning obstructions, particularly in academic writing processes. Generally speaking, writing is a cognitive enterprise that commissions learners to proactively regulate their thoughts in a sequential manner in the forms of qualified written products. Zhang, Zhang, Song, and Gong (2016) argue that EFL writing activities address more demanding workloads for learners since they should be able to exert greater controls over their ongoing writing processes in terms of ideas, emotions, feelings, and motivation. In this vein, motivation regulation plays a crucial role for graduate EFL learners to continue engaging in academic writing ventures as a higher degree of motivation regulation will lead them to preserve their positive attitudes, feelings, emotions, and interests toward the writing processes resulted in a manifestation of qualified writing products and enhancement of writing competencies. These positive writing values are in harmony with the theory of motivation regulation propounded by Bosolo and Hidi (2007) asserting that motivation regulation will enable learners to cultivate their positivity toward ongoing writing processes resulting in high-quality text creations. Through the activation of motivation regulation, graduate EFL learners will also be able to overcome a wide array of academic writing obstacles since they have transformed into more proactive self-initiators willing to double their efforts, perseverance, and motivation to accomplish the targeted tasks in the light of self-regulated behaviors. It can also be stated that graduate EFL learners possessing a higher level of motivation regulation tend to recursively equip themselves with more suitable learning strategies rewarding them to assist in coping with various learning challenges. All of these beneficial values are inextricably associated with motivation regulation theory devised by Zimmerman and Schunk (2008) who claim that EFL learners will automatically be more self-regulated knowledge seekers when they have entrenched more potent motivation regulation strategies into their learning dynamics. In a similar vein, Wolters and Benzon (2013) also believe that EFL learners will be better in controlling their learning processes when incorporating motivation regulation strategies functioning to cultivate, preserve, and foster their particular interests in varied subject specific-fields. Specifically, in order to be more self-regulated academic EFL writers possessing more robust motivation, learners have to engage continuously in intensive cognitive enterprises alike planning particular learning objectives, determining some specific strategies to foster their motivation, monitoring the chosen learning strategies, and appropriately adjusting to other learning strategies efficient for targeted learning contexts (Engelschalk, Steuer, & Dresel, 2017). In this theory, they mentioned that through conscientious learning planning, monitoring, and evaluating activities, EFL learners will consciously construct LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 599 better learning engagement and stronger motivation since they have determined to accomplish every single learning task in order to successfully achieve their learning objectives. In a similar tone, Wolters (2003) also states that motivation regulation will allow learners to design their own learning goals eventually guiding them to inculcate more powerful motivation in order to attain those well- planned objectives. To a lesser extent, six prior studies have investigated the paramount role of motivation regulation strategies in various ELT specific-fields like reading, writing, and grammar. In this section, the researchers will concisely overview the significance of the six prior studies successfully donating notable contributions to ELT areas, particularly, academic writing realms. The first study was conducted by Umamah and Cahyono (2020). They revealed that EFL university learners frequently apply motivation regulation strategies in their expository essays prone to produce more gratifying writing scores compared to other counterparts occasionally implementing motivation regulation strategies in their writing processes. Secondly, Arniatika (2019) suggested EFL teachers implementing Pecha-Kucha Strategies in speaking learning activities in order to amplify their motivation in these communicative language enterprises. In another study, Diasti and Mbato (2020a) found that the majority of Undergraduate EFL learners had been able to accomplish their thesis writing punctually when their internal and external motivation were continuously nurtured by motivation regulation strategies. Further, Diasti and Mbato (2020b) also discovered that the majority of Graduate EFL learners were able to constantly read a great number of journal articles when their positive emotions, feelings, and particular reading interests had been amplified by their lecturers. Mbato and Cendra (2019) advocated EFL educators to intensively provide more meaning-making moral support for their learners to continue writing undergraduate thesis in order to corroborate their motivation regulation and self-regulatory behaviors. In the last study, Mukti (2017) unearthed that the majority of Undergraduate EFL learners had ingrained a robust motivation to learn grammar. On the contrary, they still underwent serious hindrances in cultivating their motivation to learn this subject for a better purpose. Thus, this study recommended EFL educators to clearly locate particular activities potentially motivate or demotivate learners’ interests in learning grammar. None of these studies have touched upon specific motivation regulation strategies internalized by graduate EFL learners in facing academic writing amid Covid-19 pandemic. To fill this gap, this present study was conducted to specifically investigate particular motivation regulation strategies incorporated by Graduate University EFL learners in facing academic writing amid Covid-19 pandemic. To fulfil this study objectivity, one research problem was addressed namely: (1) What are the specific motivation regulation strategies applied by English Education Master Students in facing academic writing amid Covid-19 pandemic? Motivation Regulation The substantial components of motivation regulation have been investigated enormously worldwide by prominent educational psychologist researchers (Kim, Yoon, & Branch, 2018; Miele & Scholer, 2018; Schwinger & Pelster, 2012; Wolters & Hussain, 2015). Furthermore, Wolters (2003) connotes motivation regulation as specific thoughts, actions, and behaviours utilized by learners to LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 600 continually cultivate their perseverance, efforts, and commitment to accomplish varied given learning tasks. With a similar perspective, Wolters and Benzon (2013) subdivided six major components of motivation regulation strategies commonly harnessed by University EFL learners namely regulation of values, regulation of performance goals, self-consequating, environmental structuring, regulation of situational interests, and regulation of mastery goals. The first strategy denotes learners’ proactive engagement to design more enjoyable learning enterprises useful for them. For instance, learners attempt to hone their communicative competencies in the target language in order to obtain more decent vocation in their future lives. The second strategy deals mostly with learners’ potent controls over their learning dynamics in order to attain more fruitful learning outcomes. For example, learners work harder to rehearse their academic writing skills in order to achieve more gratifying writing scores. In self- consequating, learners will double their efforts, persistence, and determination to accomplish particular learning tasks successfully in order to gain self-rewards for themselves. One tangible example of self-consequating is learners planned to hang out with their fellows after accomplishing their thesis writing. Through environmental structuring strategy, learners will be able to exert more powerful controls over their learning circumstances in order to get the best results of their learning. The example of this strategy application is some learners prone to do some learning tasks in the library in order to concentrate accomplishing those tasks successfully by eliminating unintended disruptive events. Learners are more likely to stay on their learning processes when they implement regulation of situational interest in their learning since a higher degree of enjoyment allows them to learn the subject-specific fields more efficiently. For instance, learners can incorporate various captivating games into their vocabulary learning processes to memorize some difficult words. In the last strategy, learners will transform into more proficient and self-regulated academicians since they bravely challenge themselves to discover a wide variety of challenging conceptions in their specific fields. Overall, through the full utilization and cultivation of motivation regulation strategies, EFL learners will be able to redouble their efforts, persistence, interests, commitment, and motivation to reach their desirable learning achievements, outcomes, and competencies resulting in the tangible manifestation of self-regulated academicians. These learning merits are congruent with the benefits of motivation regulation strategies mentioned by Schwinger and Pelster (2012) clearly stating that EFL learners infusing motivation regulation strategies tend to be better knowledge disseminators, strategy planners, and decision makers. The Pivotal Role of Motivation Regulation Strategies in EFL Writing Ventures As mentioned previously, EFL writing ventures require learners to communicate their thoughts, ideas, and conceptions meaningfully in the forms of written texts in order to fulfil readers’ expectations and globalized writing regulations. Due to the demanding nature of EFL writing processes, EFL learners are obliged to induce more robust controls over their ongoing writing processes in terms of strategies usage, emotions, feelings, motivation, and interests with the purpose of generating more gratifying writing products. Mohamed and Zouaoui (2014) revealed that the majority of EFL learners encounter serious hurdles in LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 601 their writing learning dynamics like lack of motivation, strategies, and emotional controls when faced with ample writing impediments. Hence, it is advisable for EFL educators to intensively provide mutual assistance for their learners to consistently manage their writing progress in order to yield high-quality writing products by the end of the writing sessions. From this perspective, it can be surmised that in order to breed proficient and self-regulated EFL writers, educators need to continually cultivate their learners’ motivation in order to judiciously select any kinds of appropriate strategies rewarding for amplifying their eagerness and perseverance to proceed those arduous writing journeys. Manchon (2007) mentions that the mutual interplays among cognitive, metacognitive, and motivation variables should be activated at the commencement of EFL writing voyage in order to enable learners to be more inspired to accomplish their given writing tasks successfully. Although some previous studies had highlighted the key importance of activating both cognitive and metacognitive strategies in EFL writing processes (Lin, Zhang, & Yeng, 2017; Andrade & Evans, 2015; Troia, Harbaugh, Shankland, Wolbers, & Lawrence, 2013), it is indispensable for EFL educators to ceaselessly activate, nurture, and corroborate their motivation in writing in order to reach their desirable learning outcomes successfully through the full accomplishment of varied writing tasks. Wolters (2003) asserts that the majority of proficient EFL writers generally try to orchestrate their ongoing writing learning dynamics through careful-planning, monitoring, and profound learning reflections endowed with a higher degree of motivation regulation strategies. Given the importance of motivation regulation strategies in EFL writing enterprises, Teng and Zhang (2016) revealed that a great number of EFL learners in China are confronted with huge writing barriers in terms of possessing minimum English writing conventions knowledge, a small degree of writing motivation, and low level of writing confidence. In this study, they further concluded that most EFL learners in China indispensably require more than just a set of cognitive and metacognitive skills but also motivation regulation strategies as well in order to improve their overall writing competencies in the target language. All of these suggestions are in concord with the relationships of motivation regulation strategies and writing achievements adduced by Oxford (2015) along with Zimmerman and Schunk (2011) stating that EFL learners possessing a higher level of motivation regulation are more liable to employ a wide array of learning strategies worthwhile to improve their academic performances and achievements. Concerning this paramount matter, it is well- suggested here for EFL educators to internalize motivation regulation strategies at the outset of writing learning enterprises since this construct heavily influences other indispensable learning variables beneficial for supporting other psychological elements forming by learners in terms of cognitive, metacognitive, and self-regulated behaviours (Zimmerman & Schunk, 2008). Method The researchers run this study qualitatively with the support of qualitative content analysis to yield some renewable insights taken from the participants’ tangible life experiences. This nature of qualitative content analysis is inextricably associated with Krippendorff’s (2004) theory of qualitative content analysis LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 602 stating that through qualitative content analysis, researchers are able to generate some new findings in relation to in-depth phenomena descriptions recited by the participants. This present study was conducted at the English education master Study Program of Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Furthermore, 36 English education master students derived from batch 2018 and 2019 were invited to take part in this study. Specifically, these participants have involved intensively in varied academic writing projects for 2 years in order to be eligible to graduate from this study program by publishing at least 1 qualified research writing in one targeted national journal article. During the data gathering processes, there were 28 out of 36 participants who filled out the online questionnaire. This matter occurred since this online data gathering process required the participants to record their responses voluntarily without any coercion from the researchers. Further, two research instruments were also utilized in this study namely the likert-scale questionnaire and open-ended interview questions. The likert-scale questionnaire consists of 10 statements delving about English education master students’ motivation regulation strategies in facing academic writing amid Covid-19 pandemic. This first research instrument was distributed to the targeted participants by using Google Forms. The second research instrument is categorized as open ended interview questions in which 10 follow-up inquiries were being asked to obtain more reliable information with regard to specific motivation regulation strategies incorporated by the participants in confronting academic writing in the midst of Covid-19 pandemic. Dornyei and Taguchi (2009) describe that the nature of open ended questions is not followed by tangible response options but they deliberately give more freedom for the participants to share their life experiences in detail. To fulfil this objectivity, the researchers planned to invite 3 interviewees randomly to participate in this interview section. The interview was conducted through online written documents. For the data analysis, each gathered data will be delineated narratively in the light of relevant theories, findings obtained from prior studies, and selected excerpts taken from the interviewees. Findings and Discussion Congruent with above-mentioned conceptions on the critical importance of motivation regulation strategies in academic writing enterprises amid Covid-19 pandemic, this section provides more obvious portrayals, depictions, and exemplifications of specific models of motivation regulation strategies incorporated by English education master students in confronting varied academic writing tasks. Two major themes emerged from the participants’ responses collected with the support of the online likert-scale questionnaire namely motivation regulation strategies which boost learners to strive harder to attain more satisfying academic writing achievements and the impetus to be more resilient L2 academic writers through intensive utilization of motivation regulation strategies. All of the findings will be expounded in detail by lending some support from prior relevant research findings and theories postulated by experts. LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 603 Figure 1. The Maximization of Motivation Regulation Strategies to Obtain Gratifying Academic Achievements (97% Participants Agreed) As shown above, figure 1 clearly exhibits a higher degree of agreement toward the maximization of motivation regulation strategies to obtain gratifying academic achievements. A great number of agreements shown by the research participants is not surprising at all since university, particularly graduate EFL learners are demanded to be more self-regulated academicians who are better in controlling and redoubling their learning efforts in order to attain more satisfying academic achievements. This conviction is congruent with the theory of motivational regulation strategies proposed by Zimmerman and Schunk (2008) stating that EFL learners frequently implementing a wide array of motivational strategies tend to exhibit more positive learning attitudes like persistence, commitment, and determined learning objectives. In line with this core conception of motivational regulation strategies, this set of affective strategies is also worthwhile to be internalized in academic writing learning enterprises since learners will be able to cultivate their potent learning efforts, persistence, and motivation through varied learning circumstances where they are capable of exhorting a wide variety of learning strategies to accomplish the targeted writing tasks and showing a higher level of perseverance to overcome upcoming writing barriers in order to generate more satisfying academic writing achievements. This argument is in agreement with the major finding discovered in previous motivation regulation strategies study conducted by Engelschalk, Steuer, and Dresel (2017) in which the implementation motivation regulation strategies worked as a proactive engine for EFL University learners where they are able to apply various appropriate learning strategies, expend more persistent learning efforts, and cope with diverse learning impediments. All of these conceptions are in agreement with the three excerpts of interviewees below: LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 604 [Interviewee 1: I am quite familiar with it. I have learnt that in my graduate study. My answer is absolutely “yes”. Writing is not an easy thing for me. It needs strong motivation to finish what I have started. Therefore, doing some motivation regulating strategies is central during my academic writing and learning journeys.] [Interviewee 2: Yes, I am familiar with the motivation regulation strategies; I learned that in the course of English Education Master’s Program. I think that motivation regulation strategies play a crucial role in my academic learning journeys because without the good regulation I cannot continue and motivate myself to keep writing the paper.] [Interviewee 3: Yes, I am familiar with motivation regulation strategies because I learned about them in the course. Motivation regulation strategies played a crucial role in my academic learning not only in academic writing but also in my learning journeys. With good regulation strategies, I could accomplish my paper and motivate myself to keep writing.] In correlation with the major findings revealed by this first research theme, it can be surmised that the lecturers had successfully ingrained more robust motivational regulation strategies at the commencement of academic writing ventures. It is predominately showcased that the majority of participants have gained more exhaustive self-awareness during engaging in academic writing enterprises in terms of conscientious topic selections, real-life writing topics, the intention to surpass other learning companions, self-determination to yield more qualified writing products, and honing the targeted writing competencies continuously. From these significant improvements with regard to cognitive, metacognitive, and affective skills, Schwinger and Otterpohl (2017) suggested EFL educators worldwide introducing their learners with a highly-subset of motivation regulation strategies at the onset of academic writing learning dynamics in order to make them become more accustomed to regulating their motivation in a long term learning period and diminish their demotivated learning behaviours. Moving forward to the grains of findings found in this first major theme, it can be discerned that all participants devoted their agreement to the first and second findings focusing on the essentialism of selecting captivating writing topics and correlating those selected topics with their real-life basis. Specifically, these two consecutive themes pertain to one of the six streams of motivation regulation strategies as proposed by Wolter and Benzon (2013) in a previous chapter namely interest enhancement. Interest enhancement connotes learners’ capabilities in connecting their particular interests with the targeted learning tasks in order to raise a higher level of motivation to accomplish those given tasks. Teng, Yuan, and Sun (2020) state that interest enhancement can potentially boost learners’ learning motivation to make significant progress toward their learning tasks for they have chosen some specific learning interests attracting them most. Further, it cannot be denied that through the activation of interest enhancement in academic writing processes, learners will establish, reinforce, and infuse more LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 605 robust learning motivation driving them to attain the specific learning objectives through the successful accomplishment of multivariate learning tasks. This belief is in harmony with the main finding revealed by prior motivation regulation study conducted by Engelschalk, Steuer, and Dresel (2016). They advocated learners to activate interest enhancement at the beginning of writing processes in order to foster their writing competencies more intensively in the light of sturdy establishment of motivation regulation. Furthermore, concerning the third and fourth findings, we can observe that 26 out of 27 participants showed a higher degree of agreement toward the importance of self-determination in outperforming other learning companions and producing good quality of writing products to achieve more satisfying scores from their lecturers. These above-mentioned motivational components represent performance self-talk strategy. Through this motivational trajectory, learners will be able to augment their motivational levels significantly when dealing with various academic writing tasks. This conviction is able to be reassured since learners are extremely motivated to obtain more fruitful external learning outcomes constituting the exhibition of better learning performances compared to others and the attainment of satisfying academic achievements rewarded by their lecturers. Based on this perspective, Sirois and Pychyl (2013) believe that performance self-talk strategy will enable learners to annihilate any kinds of demotivated learning behaviour due to their stronger learning perseverance to outdo other learning peers and attain continuous academic appraisals from their teachers. However, the path to be more proficient and self-regulated EFL academic writers is not as easy as conceived since learners should instil a higher degree of perseverance and commitment to forge their academic writing competencies intensively to outperform other learning companions and achieve good scores from their lecturers. Harris, Graham, MacArthur, Reid, and Mason (2011) hold a strong belief that to be more advanced EFL writers, learners need to improve their targeted writing skills constantly in the light of proactive regulations of cognitive, affective, social, emotions, and motivational states. In order to embody this positive writing learning outcome, it is worthwhile to be suggested for EFL learners to infuse more powerful controls over their external motivational states in terms of exceeding other learning counterparts’ performances and striving more persistently to gain more gratifying academic scores. Presumably, the inducement of these personal external motivational states will direct learners to display specific intended learning behaviours in which they can fully degrade their demotivated learning behaviours. This perspective is in concord with the theory of performance self-talk postulated by Engelschalk, Steuer, and Dresel (2017) arguing that learners consistently activating their performance self-talk will magnify their motivational levels into the utmost assisting them to foster their learning performances and attain more satisfying scores from their teachers. From this baseline of perspective, three interviewees also articulated similar arguments as follow: [ LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 606 Interviewee 1: As what I have written before, remembering the big goal will let me focus on the final result. In addition, emotional support from friends and family are important to encourage me in my writing process. If we talk about the blockages, they can be external and internal.] [Interviewee 2: First, grade, I need to have a good grade for the subject, and I also have things to accomplish, sending the paper to journal and get it published so I could graduate from the program. Second, I want to make my writing skill better, that’s why I continue to write academically.] [Interviewee 3: The motivation is always about the grade and passing the courses. Until I realize that it’s not about the grade anymore. It’s about how to be a better writer of academic papers. I can improve myself to continue to write an academic paper and learn from my mistakes.] Again, as we can discern in the ultimate finding revealed by this first theme, continual explorations toward various academic writing conventions and practices is of notable importance in sustaining learners’ specific behaviour to achieve substantial learning outcomes in the upcoming future. This assumption is evidenced in the last finding where all participants consented to practice their academic writing skills continuously in order to be more skilful EFL writers consistently yielding significant contributions toward the targeted subject-specific fields throughout their writing products. This last motivation regulation strategy denotes mastery self-talk. As noted before, through mastery self-talk, learners will be endowed with robust motivation, commitment, and resilience in accomplishing various learning tasks for their learning realm has been extended not only to temporary learning outcomes in the forms of performances, achievements, and graded but also long-lasting learning outcomes beneficial for their future lives. Schwinger and Pelster (2012) propound that mastery self-talk and goal setting strategies will substantiate learners’ cognitive, affective, and motivational states efficiently in which they will persistently contend to improve their desirable learning competencies which are believed to be rewarding for their upcoming life matters. LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 607 Figure 2. The Full Internalization of Motivation Regulation Strategies Transforming Learners into More Resilient L2 Writers (74% Participants Agreed) In figure 2, we altogether can observe that the full internalization of motivation regulation strategies can potentially transform learners into more resilient writers. This kind of rewarding learning reward has been a communal belief within globalized ELT frameworks, particularly L2 academic writing learning enterprises. This claim is supported by some theories and previous findings discovered by some experts regarding the pivotal role of motivation regulation strategies in shaping learners to be more resilient academicians who do not easily give up while encountering myriad learning obstacles. Wolters (2011) postulates that highly self-regulated learners possessing a higher degree of motivation regulation are prone to identify manifold learning obstructions precisely in order to devise a set of learning strategies suitable to accomplish those hurdles successfully. In the same line of argument, Reeve, Ryan, and Deci (2018), in their study of motivational regulation strategies among University EFL learners, also revealed that motivational regulation strategies when being incorporated effectively, will direct learners to deploy more robust self- determination in coping with devastating academic learning barriers. Wolters and Benzon (2013) who conducted a profound investigation on the relationships between EFL learners’ autonomous motivation and motivation regulation strategies also unearthed that there was a tight-knit relationship between learners’ autonomous motivation and motivation regulation strategies where those who frequently implement this bunch of strategies are more liable to preserve their motivational and autonomy states harmoniously in order to be better strategic planners and wiser decision makers capable of handling unsavoury learning impediments. All of these delineations have been evinced by the three excerpts of interviewees as follow: [Interviewee 1: When I face some obstacles during my academic writing, I usually think of my general goal. For example, when I lacked motivation during my thesis writing, I thought of my goal that I had to finish my study on time. I wanted to make my parents happy LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 608 and never wanted to make them down. Finally, I could finish my writing successfully and on time.] [Interviewee 2: Yes, because I already set those specific strategies to confront the hurdles. The strategies are used to make me solve the problem and continue to write.] [Interviewee 3: Yes, because writing is tough and those strategies keep me doing the work. Even it is also a burden that I have to focus on and write about. But it always makes me feel like making progress and enriching my skills in writing.] In the first strand of finding unpacked in this second research theme, we are able to clearly notice that 26 out of 28 participants consented to explore various academic writing conventions for the improvement of their writing qualities along with skills. To restate, this first finding is subsumed in one of the six streams of motivation regulation strategies namely mastery self-talk. Thus, by activating this long-term motivation strategy, these learners will continually safeguard their motivation, perseverance, efforts, and commitment to attain their desirable learning goals. This rewarding learning merits is inextricably associated with Zimmerman’s and Schunk’s theory (2011) of motivation regulation and mastery self-talk strategies postulating that EFL learners determining specific learning objectives, establishing stronger learning commitment, and dedicating continual learning efforts will tend to achieve fruitful learning outcomes at the eventual journey of learning dynamics since they have transformed into highly self- motivated knowledge seekers and disseminators. In conformance with this delineation, it is also interesting to note here that giving self-rewards and providing some self-consequences after the accomplishment or failure of writing projects will also bring about significant influences for learners’ internal motivational states, self-determination, and mentalities. This assumption is clearly evidenced by the second and third findings wherein 27 out of 28 participants agreed to give self-rewards after accomplishing their academic writing projects. While there were only 10 participants who were willing to address some self- consequences due to the failure of their academic writing projects accomplishment. These two findings refer to a self-consequating strategy in which learners possess further propensity to provide specific self-appraisals or self- punishment due to the tangible outcomes derived from their learning projects. The essential role of self-consequating strategy in maintaining learners’ motivation regulation is obviously represented by a prior study of motivation regulation strategies held by Hadwin, Jarvela, and Miller (2011). They advocated learners self-consequating themselves after obtaining particular learning objectives in order to be better in regulating their ongoing learning processes in the light of firmer motivation regulation. The key role of self-consequating strategy is also closely interlinked with the beliefs held firmly by Schwinger, Steinmayr, and Spinath (2009) as well as Wolters and Benzon (2013). They mutually shared some commonalities emphasizing that self-consequating strategy if it is carefully driven by EFL learners, will reinforce and spur their existing motivational states into more robust establishment since they work out their specific learning tasks LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 609 zestfully to attain those self-rewards and elude themselves from attaining those taxing self-consequences. Concerning the third finding, the majority of participants strongly disagreed to provide self-consequences when they experience failure in their academic writing processes. Perhaps, it is due to their willingness to induce healthier intrinsic motivational controls over their academic writing learning progresses only through self-rewards in order not to discourage themselves for not continuing the ongoing academic writing processes due to the availability of self-consequences. This temporary assumption is tightly interwoven with the theory of intrinsic motivation propounded by Garn and Morin (2021) arguing that a good quality of internal motivation should be a friendly supporter for the development of learners’ learning autonomy, actions, and motivation by having them regulate their intended behaviour properly without being suppressed by any kinds of consequences. Eventually, the fourth and fifth findings where 27 and 14 participants consented the important role of specifying particular writing objectives and reducing writing disruptive events respectively clearly showcased that environmental structuring strategy is one of the external efficient motivational strategies supportive for the creation of independent learners insistently struggling to reach their desirable learning outcomes. More importantly, during the environmental structuring processes, learners will also strengthen all of their learning efforts, strategies, styles, and commitment in the lens of conducive learning circumstances. In accord with academic writing enterprises, the key of this ultimate strategy utilization depends mostly on how learners committed to accomplish the given writing tasks in the view of learning vicinities completely supportive for assisting them to stick to their goal-oriented and dynamic process occurring in their specific writing ventures. Put differently, successful writers are the figures who proactively create more pleasant, positive, and enjoyable writing learning environments in which their motivation and learning autonomy continually thrive. All of these rewarding academic writing learning merits are in line with the theory of self-consequating strategy invented by Grunschel, Schwinger, Steinmayr, and Fries (2016) together with Garn and Morin (2021) mentioning that environmental structuring strategy will provide better learning assistances for learners to decrease academic procrastination habits and redouble their learning efforts to fully accomplish varied learning projects by means of the projection of conducive learning vicinities. Pertaining to the equal importance of this strategy to the establishment of specific academic writing learning objectives, Jager, Schotanus, and Themmen (2012) along with Kim et al. (2018) also give more accentuation on the indispensable needs for EFL educators to commission their learners to set their particular writing learning goals in order to better plan, monitor, and evaluate the tangible outcomes of their writing products in accordance with the specific motivation regulation strategies they incorporate simultaneously. Through the effectiveness of these writing goals, they also added that the creation of carefully-designed goals will also bring about significant impacts toward their autonomous motivation and motivation regulation behaviours in tandem with mastery goal orientations. All of these aforementioned basic tenets of motivation regulations are granted by these three excerpts of interviewees as follow: LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 610 [Interviewee 1: Thinking of the big goal, especially related to my future and family, boosted my motivation a lot. The external motivation sometimes plays a key role in boosting someone’s motivation. If we focus on the big goal, we will be motivated almost all of the time because we have the vision of our future goal.] [Interviewee 2: I always look back into my motivation. Why did I write for the first time? Then, I will take a break if I have hurdles, just a very short break, after that I will continue to face my problem and continue to write.] [Interviewee 3: My strategies do influence my academic writing performances, progress, and achievements because they help me to monitor and manage my emotions and also motivation allows me to recognize my problems while I’m writing and use my strategies to withdraw when I’m overwhelmed.] Conclusion Taken as a whole, it is conceivable that the majority of English education master students had successfully tackled a wide array of challenging academic writing tasks by utilizing five major streams of motivation regulation strategies namely interest enhancement, performance self-talk, mastery self-talk, self- consequating, and environmental structuring. Contrarily, based on the findings mentioned above, there were still a substantial number of students who do not impart self-consequences due to the failure of their academic writing projects and view conducive learning environments as one of the paramount factors determining their academic writing success. Partially, this is probably caused by various external factors like not being able to withstand suppression situations through self-consequences and global distractions derived from other fascinating activities such as watching YouTube videos, hanging out with friends, and playing with mobile phones. Thus, it will sound better for EFL educators to start introducing the importance of giving self-consequences and distancing writing learning dynamics from varied disruptive events by training learners to embark regulate these internal and external motivational factors at the onset of academic writing learning ventures through small workshops or simple engaging presentations. Since this study was conducted by involving 36 English Education Master Students derived from two batches; 2018 and 2019 years with only 28 students who were willing to voluntarily filled out the online Likert-Scale questionnaire, it is well-suggested for future researchers to conduct correlational motivation regulation studies emphasizing on distinctive variables involving this affective learning strategy such as emotions, feelings, cognition, metacognition, and mastery goal orientations. References Allo, M. D. (2020). Is the online learning good in the midst of Covid-19 Pandemic? The case of EFL learners. Jurnal Sinestesia, 10(1), 1-10. LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 611 Andrade, M. S., & Evans, N. W. (2015). Developing self-regulated learners. ESL readers and writers in higher education: Understanding challenges, providing support, 113. Arniatika, S. (2019). Improving Speaking Performance Through Pecha Kucha Presentation Method. Pedagogy: Journal of English Language Teaching, 6(2), 129-140. Atmojo, A. E. P., & Nugroho, A. (2020). EFL classes must go online! Teaching activities and challenges during COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia. Register Journal, 13(1), 49-76. Boscolo, P., & Hidi, S. (2007). The multiple meanings of motivation to write. Writing and motivation, 19(1). Diasti, K. S., & Mbato, C. L. (2020a). Exploring undergraduate students’ motivation-regulation strategies in thesis writing. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 14(2), 176-183. Diasti, K. S., & Mbato, C. L. (2020b). The role of motivation-regulation in master students’ academic reading. Journal of English Educational Study (JEES), 3(2), 101-109. Dörnyei, Z., & Taguchi, T. (2009). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing. Routledge. Engelschalk, T., Steuer, G., & Dresel, M. (2016). Effectiveness of motivational regulation: Dependence on specific motivational problems. Learning and individual differences, 52, 72-78. Engelschalk, T., Steuer, G., & Dresel, M. (2017). Quantity and quality of motivational regulation among university students. Educational Psychology, 37(9), 1154-1170. Garn, A. C., & Morin, A. J. (2021). University students’ use of motivational regulation during one semester. Learning and Instruction, 74, 101436. Grunschel, C., Schwinger, M., Steinmayr, R., & Fries, S. (2016). Effects of using motivational regulation strategies on students' academic procrastination, academic performance, and well-being. Learning and Individual Differences, 49, 162-170. Hadwin, A. F., Järvelä, S., & Miller, M. (2011). Self-regulated, co-regulated, and socially shared regulation of learning. Handbook of self-regulation of learning and performance, 30, 65-84. Harris, K. R., Graham, S., MacArthur, C., Reid, R., & Mason, L. H. (2011). Self- regulated learning processes and children’s writing. Handbook of self- regulation of learning and performance, 187-202. Kim, D., Yoon, M., Jo, I. H., & Branch, R. M. (2018). Learning analytics to support self-regulated learning in asynchronous online courses: A case study at a women's university in South Korea. Computers & Education, 127, 233- 251. Krippendorff, K. (2004). Measuring the reliability of qualitative text analysis data. Quality and quantity, 38, 787-800. Lin, C. H., Zhang, Y., & Zheng, B. (2017). The roles of learning strategies and motivation in online language learning: A structural equation modeling analysis. Computers & Education, 113, 75-85. LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 612 Manchón, R. M. (200). Writing to learn the language: Issues in theory and research. Learning-to-write and writing-to-learn in an additional language, 61, 82. Mbato, C. L., & Cendra, A. (2019). Efl undergraduate students’ self-regulation in thesis writing: help-seeking and motivation-regulation. JELE (Journal of English Language and Education), 5(1), 66-82. Miele, D. B., & Scholer, A. A. (2018). The role of metamotivational monitoring in motivation regulation. Educational Psychologist, 53(1), 1-21. Mohamed, M., & Zouaoui, M. (2014). EFL writing hindrances and challenges: The case of second year students of English at Djillali Liabes. Journal of Educational and Social Research, 4(3), 149-149. Mukti, T. W. P. (2017). The role of students’ motivational self-regulation in structure iii. LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, 20(2), 116-126. Oxford, R. L. (2015). Expanded perspectives on autonomous learners. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 9(1), 58-71. Reeve, J., Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2018). Sociocultural influences on student motivation as viewed through the lens of self-determination theory. Big theories revisited, 2, 15-40. Schwinger, M., & Otterpohl, N. (2017). Which one works best? Considering the relative importance of motivational regulation strategies. Learning and individual differences, 53, 122-132. Schwinger, M., & Stiensmeier-Pelster, J. (2012). Effects of motivational regulation on effort and achievement: A mediation model. International Journal of Educational Research, 56, 35-47. Schwinger, M., Steinmayr, R., & Spinath, B. (2009). How do motivational regulation strategies affect achievement: Mediated by effort management and moderated by intelligence? Learning and individual differences, 19(4), 621- 627. Sirois, F., & Pychyl, T. (2013). Procrastination and the priority of short‐term mood regulation: Consequences for future self. Social and personality psychology compass, 7(2), 115-127. Stegers‐Jager, K. M., Cohen‐Schotanus, J., & Themmen, A. P. (2012). Motivation, learning strategies, participation and medical school performance. Medical education, 46(7), 678-688. Teng, L. S., & Zhang, L. J. (2016). Fostering strategic learning: The development and validation of the Writing Strategies for Motivational Regulation Questionnaire (WSMRQ). The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 25(1), 123-134. Teng, L. S., Yuan, R. E., & Sun, P. P. (2020). A mixed-methods approach to investigating motivational regulation strategies and writing proficiency in English as a foreign language context. System, 88, 102182. Troia, G. A., Harbaugh, A. G., Shankland, R. K., Wolbers, K. A., & Lawrence, A. M. (2013). Relationships between writing motivation, writing activity, and writing performance: Effects of grade, sex, and ability. Reading and Writing, 26(1), 17-44. LLT Journal, e-ISSN 2579-9533, p-ISSN 1410-7201, Vol. 24, No. 2, October 2021 613 Umamah, A., & Cahyono, B. Y. (2020). Indonesian university students’ self- regulated writing (SRW) strategies in writing expository essays. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(1), 25-35. Wolters, C. A. (2003). Regulation of motivation: Evaluating an underemphasized aspect of self-regulated learning. Educational psychologist, 38(4), 189-205. Wolters, C. A. (2011). Regulation of motivation: Contextual and social aspects. Teachers College Record, 113(2), 265-283. Wolters, C. A., & Benzon, M. B. (2013). Assessing and predicting college students’ use of strategies for the self-regulation of motivation. The Journal of Experimental Education, 81(2), 199-221. Wolters, C. A., & Hussain, M. (2015). Investigating grit and its relations with college students’ self-regulated learning and academic achievement. Metacognition and Learning, 10(3), 293-311. Zhang, J., Zhang, Y., Song, Y., & Gong, Z. (2016). The different relations of extrinsic, introjected, identified regulation and intrinsic motivation on employees’ performance. Management Decision. Zimmerman, B. J., & Schunk, D. H. (2008). An essential dimension of self- regulated learning. Motivation and self-regulated learning: Theory, research, and applications, 1, 1-30. Zimmerman, B. J., & Schunk, D. H. (2011). Motivational sources and outcomes of self-regulated learning and performance. Handbook of self-regulation of learning and performance, 5(3), 49-64.