Interaction‐Seeking Behavior in Second Language Learning: The Role of Regulatory Modes

This study investigated how trait‐level regulatory modes influenced L2 learners’ interaction‐seeking behavior (ISB) and L2 regulatory modes. To this end, 218 university‐level foreign language learners in the United States completed a questionnaire that measured their ISB and both general and L2‐specific regulatory modes. Factor analysis confirmed the two‐factor structure of ISB: Proactive interaction , concerned with seeking and engaging in interaction, and interaction monitoring , characterized by observing, evaluating, and adjusting one's L2 interaction behavior. Generalized additive models revealed that locomotion, a dispositional tendency to move from one state to another, predicted learners’ proactive interaction and interaction monitoring, whereas assessment, a dispositional tendency to think, evaluate, and analyze before acting, showed a more limited predictive role. Similarly, general locomotion significantly predicted both L2 regulatory modes, whereas general assessment predicted only L2 assessment. These findings highlight the role of locomotion in facilitating learners’ proactive engagement in L2 interaction and suggest that regulatory mode theory provides a useful lens for understanding individual differences in ISB and L2‐specific self‐regulation.