Table 4. Classification of Attitude Groups Based on GAM Scores

Note. GAM=Generalised Attitude Measure.

In my opinion, not every anxiety is negative. If we feel anxious then we study harder to overcome it, it is positive. However, almost all anxiety occurrences make us feel bored with studying English, and want to abandon English, because once we have no interest, no motivation, we cannot study well. (Dao, Aut, L40-43)

Similarly, Quan shared his view: “In my opinion, anxiety about studying English has two sides, both beneficial and harmful; however, the bad, harmful side dominates” (Quan, Aut, L44-45). Tuyet affirmed her unfavourable attitude towards English: “Despite being university students now, the anxiety about learning English is the nightmare not only for me but also for many other students” (Tuyet, MA, Aut, L35-36).

Thirty-four students were judged to have a mixed attitude towards FLA when they emphasised both its facilitating and debilitating aspects. For example, anxiety made learning English more difficult and stressful for Long, but it also made him focus more on studying:

In the exam time, it was the anxiety towards English that pushed me to focus on studying more in order to gain good result. It is different from ordinary days, when I have no anxious feeling I never study English. (Long, Int, L65-67)

Taking it more generally, Na and Yen admitted anxiety made learning more difficult, but they also supposed that if students did not feel anxious at all, they might think they were good enough at English and did not need to study, thus making no progress, or that anxiety implied students’ concern about studies, whereas for those who did not feel anxious it might mean they had abandoned EFL learning. In fact, it could be determined from Duc’s sharing of his anxiety that Duc did not feel highly anxious because he did not care much about EFL learning: “I don’t like studying English, so I mainly learn it to cope with exams. My target is to pass the exams only, I do not expect much on the results, therefore I do not feel very anxious” (Duc, Aut, L5-8). This view was also supported by Trong, who assumed that once students started to study seriously, they would unavoidably experience many pressures and that, “in order to get success, it seems that we have to endure considerable pressures”(Trong, Aut, L38-39, 59).

Four students were judged to be more positive towards FLA because they emphasised the positive over the negative effects of FLA. According to these students, FLA was not harmful, but beneficial for them because it motivated them to study harder. Not only affirming the positive effects of FLA on themselves, they also pointed out that anxiety had a positive impact on every student. This view was reflected in Thanh’s response:

Int: In your opinion, how does EFLA affect students?

Thanh: Anxiety about studying English has very good impact on students. Particularly, students have to spend more time studying, enrich knowledge on English; actively practise listening, speaking, reading, writing skills, etc. These will help students enhance English proficiency in order to use in studies and to apply in future jobs. ... In my case, when anxious feeling occurs to me, it has good effect on my study result, because the anxiety makes me recognise that I have to try to study more in order to supplement the knowledge I lack.

(Thanh, Int, L58-64, 81-83)

Although these four students did not deny the detrimental effects caused by high levels of anxiety, they focused on the facilitating side of anxiety that forced students to improve their English proficiency, which was, from their point of view, necessary and important for their future. For example, Trung explained:

My anxiety only makes me try to study English more, not causing me to neglect studying English because I think English is very necessary for my future when I graduate and apply for jobs. And without English proficiency, opportunities for further studies for professional development are far from feasible. (Trung, Aut, L45-49)

Trung was strongly aware of the role of English for his future, therefore anxiety played the role of warning him to pay more attention to his EFL learning.

In summary, the analysis of the student GAM found variability in the students’ attitudes towards FLA. Detailed analysis of the students’ interview transcripts and autobiographies elaborated on this finding, indicating that almost all of the students considered a certain level of FLA to be natural, and they acknowledged both the good and the bad aspects of FLA. However, the students differed in their judgments on which aspect prevailed and how strongly one prevailed over the other. Specifically, whereas 52.7% had explicit attitudes(mainly negative) towards FLA, 47.3% had a mixed attitude towards it.

Teachers’ attitudes towards FLA. The analysis of teachers’ attitudes towards FLA was based on the data from eight teacher interview transcripts. Relevant questions were asked to ascertain how the teachers perceived the nature of FLA and whether they had a positive or negative view about it.

According to all of the teachers, anxiety was a natural feeling that was inherent in every student in their foreign language learning. For example, Bang supposed that anxiety was a natural reaction when students found it difficult to adapt to the learning environment or course requirements, and Chau elaborated: “That students have anxious feelings is very natural. Approaching new textbooks different from those at high school, new teachers, new or different teaching methods, etc., all these factors cause anxiety more or less to students”(Chau, Int, L21-25). Regardless of the reasons behind student anxiety, these teachers postulated that anxiety at a certain level was natural in EFL learning.

When asked about their feelings towards FLA, these teachers emphasised both the facilitating and debilitating aspects of FLA. For example, Que said:

To some extent, anxiety about English language learning is negative when students lose their interest and enthusiasm in learning English. However, some students can gain their English proficiency from that first anxiety. They know what level they are in and try their best to master the language. (Que, Int, L33-36)

Que stressed that anxiety might cause both positive and negative effects. Similarly, Bang commented, “Anxiety can either be a motivation to push students to try more or create more pressure to students in learning” (Bang, Int, L34-35). Although these teachers were negative about FLA, perceiving that it might cause detrimental effects on students if their degree of anxiety was high, they also believed anxiety could be a sign of concern about studies: “To some extent, it is good because they at least care about their English language learning rather than ignoring it” (Uyen, Int, L17-18).

According to these teachers, if students did not feel anxious at all, it was likely that they did not care about EFL learning. For them, those students who did not want to study English seemed not to be anxious at all, whereas those who felt anxious and sought help from teachers were likely to be serious about their learning. This view was reflected in Vy’s response: “If students are serious about their learning a foreign language and see its importance, the degree of anxiety is higher than lazy ones” (Vy, Int, L13-14). Given the importance of English, students were supposed to be serious in learning English. In this sense, anxiety was favoured. For instance, Nguyet commented, “A bit of tension is necessary, especially for not-very-hard-working students” (Nguyet, Int, L36-37).

As such, all of the teachers considered FLA to be both facilitating and debilitating depending on its degree. There was no evidence to determine whether they judged which aspect dominated. The interviews indicate that the teachers had a mixed attitude towards FLA, expressing both positive and negative comments about it.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

This study explored the existence of FLA in Vietnamese non-Englishmajor students and sought answers to the questions about whether EFL students and teachers, as the key stakeholders in the EFL learning and teaching process, were aware of the existence of FLA as a phenomenon in EFL learning and whether they had a positive or negative view of it. Several conclusions can be drawn from the findings of this study.

First, the results obtained from the FLCAS show that this population of students had a high level of anxiety about EFL learning. It was even higher than many other populations that had previously been studied. Based on this finding, FLA was shown to exist as a phenomenon in EFL learning in Vietnam as another context of foreign language anxiety research.

Second, given the importance attributed to FLA research in the literature and the high level of FLA in this population, the students and teachers were expected to be aware of the existence of FLA. The results obtained from the GBM indicate that the students reported learning EFL made many students feel anxious. That is, they were aware of the existence of FLA and perceived it as a phenomenon in EFL learning, not just part of their own struggle to learn a foreign language. This finding was obtained from 419 students of different majors, from various places of origin, and with different starting points in time for learning English, thus having reasonable generalisability. This result was also corroborated through the analysis of 18 students’ interview transcripts, which included 6 HA, 6 MA, and 6 LA students. This process of maximum variation sampling allowed us to assume the findings were reasonably stable (D?ornyei, 2007). The analysis of the students’ interview transcripts reveals that almost all of the students believed FLA existed in a large number of students. Most of them considered FLA as a serious problem that needed to be managed. This was aligned with the actual situation of FLA as identified by the FLCAS measure. However, there seemed to be a mismatch between students’ and teachers’ perceptions of the spread and severity of FLA. The students tended to consider FLA to be more serious than their teachers did. Based on the analysis of the teacher GBM and interview transcripts, most of the teachers were aware of the existence of FLA, but they considered it to exist in only a small number of students. Most of the teachers did not consider FLA as a serious problem; they therefore had not seriously taken it into account in their teaching. The discrepancy between the students’ and teachers’ beliefs about FLA and the finding about the existence of FLA obtained from the FLCAS suggest that these teachers underestimated the importance of this issue.

Third, the analyses of students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards FLA found a consensus that a certain degree of FLA was natural for students learning English. This is in accordance with the position that anxiety is “part of our existence” (Bigdeli & Bai, 2009, p. 108) and that foreign language learning is “rarely without anxiety of some kind” (Jones, 2004, p. 30). However, the teachers tended to have a more positive attitude towards FLA than did the students. Whereas nearly half of the students expressed an explicitly unfavourable attitude towards FLA, all eight teachers expressed a mixed attitude towards it; that is, they tended to consider FLA to be both good and bad for students without emphasising either extreme. Although the teachers’ view was not necessarily wrong, because nearly half of the students still emphasised the debilitating side of FLA over its facilitating side, these teachers did not appear to understand the full impact of FLA on students. It is possible that FLA has both positive and negative effects on learning, but given that nearly half of the students still had a negative view of FLA, this implies that the level of FLA was still beyond their control, thus causing more negative than positive effects on their learning.

Pedagogical Implications

Based on these findings, this study suggests that the prevalence of FLA that has been demonstrated in the literature does not guarantee that foreign language students and teachers are aware of it. Because teachers play a supportive and guiding role in the foreign language teaching and learning process, they should pay more attention to understanding the existence of FLA in students and enrich their knowledge about FLA. In planning curriculum, teachers should be more responsive to students’ anxieties and needs. Being more responsive helps teachers both understand their students and be able to support students in managing their anxiety through designing appropriate learning activities. By doing so, teachers would be able to build a supportive learning environment, which is believed to reduce anxiety levels(Casado & Dereshiwsky, 2001; Ewald, 2007; Gregersen & Horwitz, 2002; Tallon, 2009; Von W?orde, 2003) and helps teachers enrich their teaching experiences so as to optimise their role.

Limitations and Implications for Future Research

This study found a high level of FLA among the student population. However, the factors that made these students feel so anxious about EFL learning remain to be uncovered. Whether these factors are related to learning, performance, or cultural features should also be unpacked. Further research needs to be done to shed light on these factors. In addition, so far there has been limited research on FLA in the Vietnamese context; therefore, we do not know if the unusually high level of FLA found in this study is typical of Vietnamese students. More research on FLA with students of different majors should be useful in clarifying this question.

The awareness of FLA among EFL students and teachers in the study was examined in terms of their perceived existence of FLA only. How EFL students and teachers are aware of the elements of FLA, including its possible sources, effects, and management strategies, needs to be examined if this awareness is to be understood adequately.

In addition, given that FLA has been the focus of numerous studies, many of which have found evidence of its detrimental effects, there is no doubt that efforts should be made to find solutions to deal with these effects. However, with all of the teachers in this study recognising both the facilitating and the debilitating aspects of FLA, and half of the students having both positive and negative views of FLA, we suggest that the facilitating side of FLA is also worth attention. Given that limited research has examined the facilitating side of FLA, in addition to finding solutions to reduce FLA, future research on managing FLA should also find ways to take advantage of the positive effects of FLA on language teaching and learning.

THE AUTHORS

Tran Thi Thu Trang is an English lecturer and officer dealing with research management and international relations at Hue University, in Vietnam. She is currently doing research at the School of Education, University of Queensland. Her research interests include educational psychology, affective factors in language learning, and teaching and learning in higher education.

Richard B. Baldauf Jr., professor of TESOL at the School of Education, University of Queensland, has published numerous articles in refereed journals and books. He is coauthor of Language Planning from Practice to Theory (1997), Language and Language-in-Education Planning in the Pacific Basin (2003), and Planning Chinese Characters: Evolution, Revolution or Reaction(2008).

Karen Moni is an associate professor and coordinates curriculum and literacy courses at the School of Education, University of Queensland. Her research interests include literacy and young adults with intellectual disabilities and teaching, learning, and assessment in higher education. She is currently the president of the Australian Association for the Teaching of English.

REFERENCES

Aida, Y. (1994). Examination of Horwitz, Horwitz, and Cope’s construct of foreign language anxiety: The case of students of Japanese. Modern Language Journal, 78, 155-168. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.1994.tb02026.x

Bailey, P., Onwuegbuzie, A. J., & Daley, C. E. (2000). Correlates of anxiety at three stages of the foreign language learning process. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 19, 474-490. doi:10.1177/0261927X00019004005

Bigdeli, S., & Bai, H. (2009). The triunal model of anxiety and its application to anxiety reduction in learning and teaching environments. TESL Canada Journal, 27, 103-114.

Botella, J., & Gambara, H. (2006). Doing and reporting a meta-analysis. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 6, 425-440.

Brannen, J. (2004). Working qualitatively and quantitatively. In C. Seale, G. Gobo,J. Gubrium, & D. Silverman (Eds.), Qualitative research practice (pp. 282-196). London, England: Sage. doi:10.4135/9781848608191.d25

Brannen, J. (2008). The practice of a mixed methods research strategy: Personal, professional and project considerations. In M. M. Bergman (Ed.), Advances in mixed methods research (pp. 53-65). New Delhi, India: Sage.

Bryman, A. (2008). Social research methods (3rd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Casado, M. A., & Dereshiwsky, M. I. (2001). Foreign language anxiety of university students. College Student Journal, 35, 539-551.

Chen, M. C., & Lin, H. J. (2009). Self-efficacy, foreign language anxiety as predictors of academic performance among professional program students in a general English proficiency writing test. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 109, 420-430. doi:10.2466/ pms.109.2.420-430

Cooper, H. M., & Rosenthal, R. (1980). Statistical versus traditional procedures for summarizing research findings. Psychological Bulletin, 87, 442-449. doi:10. 1037/0033-2909.87.3.442

Coryell, J. E., & Clark, M. C. (2009). One right way, intercultural participation, and language learning anxiety: A qualitative analysis of adult online heritage and nonheritage language learners. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 483-504. doi:10.1111/ j.1944-9720.2009.01037.x

Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2007). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Donahoe, T. (2010). Language anxiety in the online environment: An exploratory study of a secondary online Spanish class (Doctoral dissertation). Available from Pro-Quest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI No. 3412006)D

D?ornyei, Z. (2007). Research methods in applied linguistics. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Dunn-Rankin, P. (1983). Scaling methods. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Elkhafaifi, H. (2005). Listening comprehension and anxiety in the Arabic language classroom. Modern Language Journal, 89, 206-220. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.2005.00275.x

Ewald, J. D. (2007). Foreign language learning anxiety in upper-level classes:Involving students as researchers. Foreign Language Annals, 40, 122-142. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2007.tb02857.x

Gregersen, T. (2003). To err is human: A reminder to teachers of language-anxious students. Foreign Language Annals, 36, 25-32. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2003. tb01929.x

Gregersen, T., & Horwitz, E. K. (2002). Language learning and perfectionism: Anxious and non-anxious language learners’ reactions to their own oral performance. Modern Language Journal, 86, 562-570. doi:10.1111/1540-4781.00161

Hauck, M., & Hurd, S. (2005). Exploring the link between language anxiety and learner selfmanagement in open language learning contexts. European Journal of Open, Distance and E-learning, 2005(2). Retrieved from http://www.eurodl. org/?article=214

Heise, D. R. (1970). The semantic differential and attitude research. In G. F. Summers (Ed.), Attitude measurement (pp. 235-253). Chicago, IL: Rand McNally.

Horwitz, E. K. (2008). Becoming a language teacher: A practical guide to second language learning and teaching. Boston, MA: Pearson Education/Allyn & Bacon.

Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. A. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. Modern Language Journal, 70, 125-132. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.1986. tb05256.x

Horwitz, E. K., & Young, D. J. (Eds.). (1991). Language anxiety: From theory and research to classroom implications. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Hurd, S. (2007). Anxiety and non-anxiety in a distance language learning environment: The distance factor as a modifying influence. System, 35, 487-508. doi:10. 1016/ j.system.2007.05.001

Hurd, S., & Xiao, J. (2010). Anxiety and affective control among distance language learners in China and the UK. RELC Journal, 41, 183-200. doi:10. 1177/0033688210373640

Jones, J. F. (2004). A cultural context for language anxiety. EA Journal, 21(2), 30-39.

Kim, S. Y. (2009). Questioning the stability of foreign language classroom anxiety and motivation across different classroom contexts. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 138-157. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2009.01012.x

Kostic-Bobanovic, M. (2009). Foreign language anxiety of university students.

Ekonomska Istrazivanja-Economic Research, 22(3), 47-54.

Liu, M. (2006). Anxiety in EFL classrooms: Causes and consequences. TESL Reporter, 39(1), 13-32.

Liu, M., & Jackson, J. (2008). An exploration of Chinese EFL learners’ unwillingness to communicate and foreign language anxiety. Modern Language Journal,92, 71-86. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.2008.00687.x

MacIntyre, P. D., & Doucette, J. (2010). Willingness to communicate and action control. System, 38, 161-171. doi:10.1016/j.system.2009.12.013

MacIntyre, P. D., & Gardner, R. C. (1994). The subtle effects of language anxiety on cognitive processing in the second language. Language Learning, 44, 283-305. doi:10.1111/j.1467-1770.1994.tb01103.x

Marcos-Llinas, M., & Garau, M. J. (2009). Effects of language anxiety on three proficiencylevel courses of Spanish as a foreign language. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 94-111. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2009.01010.x

McCroskey, J. C. (2006). Reliability and validity of the Generalized Attitude Measure

and Generalized Belief Measure. Communication Quarterly, 54, 265-274. doi:10.1080/01463370600877893

McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (1989). Bipolar scales. In P. Emmert & L. L. Barker(Eds.), Measurement of communication behaviors (pp. 154-167). White Plains, NY: Longman.

McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (1996). Fundamentals of human communication: An interpersonal perspective. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland.

Onwuegbuzie, A. J., Bailey, P., & Daley, C. E. (2000). Cognitive, affective, personality, and demographic predictors of foreign-language achievement. Journal of Educational Research, 94, 3-15. doi:10.1080/00220670009598738

Onwuegbuzie, A. J., & Collins, K. M. T. (2007). A typology of mixed methods sampling designs in social science research. Qualitative Report, 12, 281-316.

Pappamihiel, N. E. (2002). English as a second language students and English language anxiety: Issues in the mainstream classroom. Research in the Teaching of English, 36, 327-355.

Pichette, F. (2009). Second language anxiety and distance language learning. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 77-93. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2009.01009.x

Price, M. L. (1991). The subjective experience of foreign language anxiety: Interview with highly anxious students. In E. K. Horwitz & D. J. Young (Eds.), Language anxiety: From theory and research to classroom implications (pp. 101-108). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Rodríguez, M. (1995). Foreign language classroom anxiety and students success in EFL classes. Revista Venezolana de Linguistica Aplicada, 1, 23-32.

Rodríguez, M., & Abreu, O. (2003). The stability of general foreign language classroom anxiety across English and French. Modern Language Journal, 87, 365-374. doi:10.1111/1540-4781.00195

Rosenfeld, R. A. (1978). Anxiety and learning. Teaching Sociology, 5, 151-166. doi:10.2307/1317061

Sanchez-Herrero, S. A., & Sanchez, M. P. (1992). The predictive validation of an instrument designed to measure student anxiety in learning a foreign language. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52, 961-967. doi:10. 1177/0013164492052004019

Sellers, V. D. (2000). Anxiety and reading comprehension in Spanish as a foreign language. Foreign Language Annals, 33, 512-521. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2000. tb01995.x

Tallon, M. (2006). Foreign language anxiety in heritage students of Spanish: To be (anxious) or not to be (anxious)? That is the question (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI No. 3245300)

Tallon, M. (2009). Foreign language anxiety and heritage students of Spanish: A quantitative study. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 112-137. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2009.01011.x

Tonkiss, F. (2004). Analysing text and speech: Content and discourse analysis. In C. Seale(Ed.), Researching society and culture (2nd ed., pp. 367-382). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Tran, T. T. T. (2012). A review of Horwitz, Horwitz, and Cope’s theory of foreign language anxiety and the challenges to the theory. English Language Teaching, 5, 69-75. doi:10.5539/elt.v5n1p69

Von W?orde, R. A. (2003). Students’ perspectives on foreign language anxiety. Inquiry, 8(1). Retrieved from http://www.vccaedu.org/inquiry/inquiryspring2003/ i-81-worde.html

Wang, Y., & Li, J. (2011, May). The interference of foreign language anxiety in the reading comprehension of agricultural engineering students. Paper presented at the 2011 International Conference on New Technology of Agricultural Engineering, Zibo, China.

Woodrow, L. J. (2006). Anxiety and speaking English as a second language. Regional Language Centre Journal, 37, 308-328. doi:10.1177/0033688206071315

Yan, X., & Horwitz, E. K. (2008). Learners’ perceptions of how anxiety interacts with personal and instructional factors to influence their achievement in English: A qualitative analysis of EFL learners in China. Language Learning, 58, 151-183. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9922.2007.00437.x

Zhao, A. (2009). Foreign language reading anxiety: Investigating English-speaking university students learning Chinese as a foreign language in the United States(Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database.(UMI No. 3374058)

Supporting Information

Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article at the publisher’s website:

Appendix S1. Generalised Belief Measure.

Appendix S2. Generalised Attitude Measure.

Appendix S3. Students’ Responses to FLCAS Items.