Foreign Language Anxiety and Self-Efficacy: Intermediate Korean as a Foreign Language Learners

Abstract

This study examined the foreign language anxiety (FLA) and foreign language (FL) self-efficacy of learners of intermediate Korean as a foreign language (KFL), in relation to four language skills (i.e., speaking, listening, reading, and writing). Forty-one KFL students, enrolled in Second-year and Third-year level Korean courses at a university in Australia, completed an online questionnaire. The findings suggested that these students had moderate levels of FLA (M=2.78), especially regarding speaking (M=3.16) and listening (M=3.09). The students also showed high levels of self-efficacy in listening (M=3.66) and speaking (M=3.36). Positive correlations were found between FLA and the four skill-specific anxieties, with negative correlations between FLA and levels of self-efficacy in the four specific skills. Speaking self-efficacy was found to be the best predictor of FLA, and a lack of knowledge of Korean was revealed to be the major source of anxiety across all four skills. The students also felt confident when performing routine class activities. Keywords: Korean as a foreign language learners, foreign language anxiety, foreign language self-efficacy, individual learner differences, intermediate Korean language learners