Foreign Language Anxiety: The Case of Proficiency and Gender

Anxiety as a multi-dimensional affective factor has been the limelight of many studies so far. Despite the bulk of literature on various aspects of anxiety, the enigmatic issue remains controversial. This correlational study aims to explore the relationship between the construct of anxiety across different English proficiency levels including elementary, intermediate, and advanced in Iranian EFL learners. To this end, 108 male and female (54 in each group) Iranian EFL learners ranged in age 14-18 took part in the present study at a private language school in Gorgan, Iran. The analysis explored the general relationship between anxiety levels and English proficiency levels. We also analyzed the level of anxiety within male and female EFL learners and evaluated gender differences in terms of anxiety for proficiency levels. Chi Square statistical analyses demonstrated a relationship between anxiety and levels of proficiency in general. No significant relationship was found between anxiety and proficiency levels within males and females. The analyses indicated no significant relationship between male and female EFL learners at the advanced proficiency levels. However, a significant relationship was found between intermediate male and female EFL learner groups regarding their level of anxiety. Also, a weak relationship was seen between elementary male and female EFL learner groups concerning their level of anxiety; overall, females seemed to be more anxious than males. The results might help teachers, teacher educators, and syllabus designers to devise their courses and tests considering affective factors which ultimately help learners to overcome some of their learning difficulties.

Keywords:

Anxiety , English proficiency levels , Gender