Much of the recent literature in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research has a primary reliance on experimental design and quantitative analysis. Since SLA is so complex and multidimensional, it is difficult to study in an unnatural experimental design. In such a setting, some of the variables that affect the very nature of language learning may be missed within experimental design. Furthermore, the complexity of SLA often makes it difficult to formulate the appropriate questions or to identify the relevant variables. At the same time, the profession is becoming more socially responsive and more politically involved and the fact that language pedagogy is context sensitive has been well documented. These new developments are in contrast with some concepts such as objectivity, generalization and idealization that we have in our research orientation. The purpose of this paper is to show that research orientation in SLA does not match with the new developments that we have had in the profession, and to shed more light on the core assumptions underlying qualitative research, proposing it as a more relevant way of conducting research in SLA. Of course, the intention is not to deny the application of quantitative research in SLA totally. 

 

Key words: Qualitative research, quantitative analysis, SLA, SLA research.