The commonly-cited phrase that bi- and multilingualism are no longer exceptions but rather the rule in most parts of the world is often-cited. This plurilingual reality has profound effects on the daily lives of many, and thus also represents a common experience of a considerable proportion of today’s students in compulsory education. Despite this wide recognition, there remains still a paucity of studies that examine the impact that the acquisition of multiple languages has upon a learner’s sense of self, and moreover, studies that consider methods though which we might evaluate and model these constructions of complex self-concept. A greater understanding of such processes of identification has potential social and educational implications.

This PhD study has explored the phenomenon of adolescent multilingual language learner identity development via a mixed-methods, comparative context approach at three school sites based in Finland, France & England. Individual and group identity (re)constructions are considered across the system boundaries and the emergent isolated and cross-context variables of impact are identified and analysed. Defining the context-linked specificities of multilingual identity construction, as well as seeking to identify themes applicable inter-context, responds to Henry’s (2012), among others, call for a greater understanding of the nature of these variable interactions within the complex negation of self in language learning. In so doing, this thesis also demonstrates how the conceptualisation of learner self within a complexity framework can be operationalised in practical terms.