Abstract：While the topic of classroom interactions is attracting increased research attention from for‐ eign language teachers and researchers of applied linguistics, previous studies have centered around collaboration, language use, and negotiations of meaning in the interactions and have paid insufficient attention to the conflicts and disagreements that arise during interactions. The current phenomenological study investigates Chinese EFL students’ lived experiences of conflicts and disagreements in the interactions in the L2 writing classrooms and sheds light on the nature of such experiences. The participants were fifteen English-major undergraduate and postgraduate students at a key university in China. Drawing upon multiple sources of data, including critical incident forms and in-depth interviews, the study reveals eight themes of conflicts in the cognitive, affective, behavioral, and social aspects. To resolve the conflicts, the students mainly used four strategies, including communication, resource-seeking, self-reflection, and emotional regulation. Based on the findings, a multi-dimensional framework is proposed to theorize the conflicts in L2 writing interactions. Implications for research and pedagogy are also provided.
Key words: L2 writing; classroom interactions; conflicts; phenomenological study; writing class‐ rooms
