Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety, Positive Orientation, and Perceived Teacher and Student Emotional Support among Iranian EFL Learners

Research has demonstrated that many factors underlie foreign language classroom anxiety. This correlational study is an attempt to investigate the relationship between foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA), positive orientation, and perceived teacher and student emotional support among Iranian EFL learners and examine the predictive power of positivity and perceived teacher and student emotional support on FLCA of Iranian EFL learners. To this end, ۲۱۳ Iranian teenage and adult beginner EFL learners (۱۲۷ teenagers and ۸۶ adults) filled out the FLCA scale (Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, ۱۹۸۶), the positivity scale (Caprara, Alessandri, Trommsdorff, Heikamp, Yamaguchi, & Suzuki, ۲۰۱۲), and the teacher and student emotional support scales (Johnson & Johnson, ۱۹۸۳). Afterward, the researchers examined the correlations among variables, and multiple regression was run to find out the predictive power of positive orientation and perceived teacher and student emotional support on classroom anxiety. The findings revealed that there were significant relationships among all variables. Further, positivity and perceived teacher and student emotional support significantly predicted FLCA levels of Iranian teenage and adult beginner EFL learners. It is noteworthy that EFL teachers require formal training to establish rapport and positive relationships with their students, minimize their FLCA, and create a friendly, supportive, and non-threatening learning environment in their EFL classes in Iranian language schools.

Keywords:

Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety , Positive Orientation , Student Emotional Support , Teacher Emotional Support