Foreign language anxiety in relation to gender equity in foreign language learning: A comparative study between Australia and Indonesia

Abstract

This study examines gender differences in foreign language anxiety and compares foreign language anxiety experienced by Indonesian learners of English in Indonesia and Australia. Participants of the study were 64 Indonesian learners of English in Indonesia and Australia aged between 16 and 18. They completed the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) by Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986) to measure the level of their language anxiety. The result indicated that males were significantly more anxious than female students in the three dimensions of the FLCAS. Males and females also exhibited different patterns of anxiety level. With regards to the differences between the contexts of language learning, generally students who learnt English in Indonesia were more anxious than those who studied English in Australia.