Introduction. Foreign language learning anxiety has been extensively studied internationally, but due to the differences in cultural backgrounds, educational systems and learning environments, the characteristics of Chinese college students’ foreign language learning anxiety and its causes are still worthy of in-depth research. The root causes of foreign language learning anxiety among Chinese college students are complex, multifaceted, and deeply rooted in educational and cultural backgrounds. By gaining a deeper understanding of foreign language learning anxiety among English major college students, this study can provide educators with a basis for improving teaching methods, and can also help students reduce foreign language anxiety in the right way, thus improving the efficiency and quality of foreign language learning.
Study participants and methods. Taking students from three language universities in China as the research subjects, this study collected 970 questionnaires by means of questionnaire surveys, and a total of 62 invalid questionnaires were excluded, thus ultimately obtaining 908 valid questionnaires that met the requirements of the study, and the validity rate of the questionnaires was 93.61%.
Results. There were significant differences in foreign language anxiety (t=5.173, F=8.050), metacognitive ability (t=6.488, F=8.802), and perceptual social support (t=3.888, F=9.173) among Chinese college students of different genders and grades. There was a significant negative effect of perceptual social support on foreign language anxiety among Chinese university students (β=-.549, p<.001). There was a significant positive effect of perceptual social support on metacognitive ability (β=-.545, p<.001) among Chinese university students. The standardised regression coefficient of perceptual social support changed from (β= -.549, p< .001) to (β= -.305, p< .001), suggesting that metacognitive ability partially mediated the relationship between perceptual social support and foreign language anxiety.
Conclusion. The present study provides data-based evidence revealing the differential and significant relationships between different background variables on foreign language anxiety, metacognitive ability, and navigating social support, and reveals the mechanisms of foreign language anxiety formation, pointing to potential intervention pathways, i.e., the enhancement of the social support network and the enhancement of the learners’ metacognitive regulatory abilities can effectively alleviate foreign language anxiety.
Keywords: college students, foreign language anxiety, metacognitive ability, appreciation of social support, psychodynamic field theory
For Citation: Zhao, Z. L., Yu, X. X., & Jiang, M. (2025). A study on the influence of foreign language anxiety on English majors in Chinese universities. Perspektivy nauki i obrazovania = Perspectives of Science and Education, (5), 566–579. https://doi.org/10.32744/pse.2025.5.36
Информация об авторах:
Man Jiang (Thailand, Bangkok) — Doctor of Philosophy, Assistant Professor
Education Management, Chinese International College. Dhurakij Pundit University. E-mail: man.jia@dpu.ac.th
Xingxian Yu (China, Jiangxi) — Doctor of Philosophy (Education Management). Education Management, Chinese International College. Dhurakij Pundit University. E-mail: 1228183754@qq.com
Zhelu Zhao (China, Tianjin) — Doctor of Philosophy (Education Management). Education Management, Chinese International College
Dhurakij Pundit University. E-mail: 954761884@qq.com
Оставить комментарий