The role of hot cognition, or cognitive processing influenced by emotions, on second language (L2) learning is relatively understudied (Dörnyei, 2009; MacIntyre, 2002; Swain, 2013). The present research investigated how positive, negative, and neutral mood states influence aspects of second language acquisition (SLA), as well as potentially moderate the relationship between certain personality characteristics (i.e., openness, intuition, emotional intelligence, foreign language anxiety, and impulsivity) and L2 performance. After completing individual differences questionnaires, participants were divided into either a Comparison group or one of three emotionally induced treatment groups and subsequently exposed to a semiartificial language under incidental learning conditions. Immediate and two-week delayed testing measured grammatical accuracy of the target syntactic forms, while source attribution data and retrospective verbal reports gauged what types of knowledge (implicit, explicit, or a combination of both) were acquired by participants. Results suggest that positive emotions are the most beneficial to L2 learning. Although effects were small, negative mood states appeared to hinder the ability for long-term L2 retention. Findings also revealed that knowledge gains were chiefly guided by explicit means. Lastly, results demonstrated that the affective stimuli played a moderating role in the relationship between immediate L2 performance and the traits of intellect, stress management, premeditation, perseverance. This study contributes to SLA literature regarding emotions and their impact on L2 learning and individual differences.
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