Volume 30 Number 1, 2026 GenAI chatbots in language learning: A systematic review of emerging affordances

GenAI chatbots in language learning: A systematic review of emerging affordances

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access-status:
open.access
bitstream:
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bitstream_txt:
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collection:
Volume 30 Number 1, 2026
contributor.author:
Lopez, Luis Arabadzhy, Galyna
contributor.editor:
Yu-ju Lan
date.accessioned:
2026-07-10T16:44:27Z
date.available:
2026-07-10T16:44:27Z
date.copyright:
2026
date.issued:
2026-07-13
description.abstract:
Educators are increasingly using GenAI chatbots in language learning classrooms. However, without a guiding theoretical framework, GenAI use may emphasize technological capabilities while overlooking the instructional and social goals of the learning environment. In this systematic review, we draw on the usefulness framework from the field of computer-supported collaborative learning to examine 24 empirical studies on the use of GenAI chatbots in language learning classrooms published between 2022 and 2025. By tracing how educators are using GenAI chatbots’ in language learning classrooms, we identify (1) the technological, pedagogical, and social affordances that were reported in previous research and continue being used, (2) the development of new sub-affordances within these three categories, and (3) the emergence of a new category of affordances related to the emotional state of learners, which we call Emotional Affordances. This new category, furthermore, nests a new subset of chatbots’ capabilities: Engagement, Safety, and Self-Efficacy, thus expanding the existing theoretical framework. The results provide theoretical and pedagogical implications that contribute to the field of computer-assisted language learning (CALL).
endingpage:
25
format.extent:
25
identifier.citation:
Lopez, L., & Arabadzhy, G. (2026). GenAI chatbots in language learning: A systematic review of emerging affordances. Language Learning & Technology, 30(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.64152/10125/73700
identifier.doi:
https://doi.org/10.64152/10125/73700
identifier.issn:
1094-3501
identifier.uri:
https://hdl.handle.net/10125/73700
language:
eng
llt.topic:
Review Articles
number:
1
publicationname:
Language Learning & Technology
publisher:
University of Hawaii National Foreign Language Resource Center Center for Language & Technology
rights.license:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License
rights.uri:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
site_url:
/item/10125-73700/
startingpage:
1
subject:
artificial intelligence (AI), chatbots, computer assisted language learning (CALL), generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), language learning
title:
GenAI chatbots in language learning: A systematic review of emerging affordances
type:
Article Text
volume:
30