An Empirical Study On Factors Influencing English Learning Anxiety Of Non-english Majors In A Higher Vocational College

Anxiety as one of the significant affective factors has become research focus in the field of second language acquisition since 1970 s. Researchers have described and analyzed foreign language anxiety from various aspects. English as the most widely taught foreign language in China has also witnessed certain levels of learning anxiety among Chinese English learners including higher vocational college students.Researchers abroad have initiated the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale(FLCAS) – a scale to measure foreign language learners’ anxiety levels. Since then,large quantities of researchers at home and abroad began to apply FLCAS to assess different language learners’ foreign language anxiety. Nevertheless, studies concerning influential factors on foreign language anxiety are infrequent.On the basis of the anxiety theories of classical researchers at home and abroad,the author of this study employed research instruments like the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale(FLCAS) and the Survey of Influential Factors on English Learning Anxiety created by the author of this study in order to investigate higher vocational non-English majors’ English learning situations. Three research questions are put forward:(1) To what extent does FLA exist in higher vocational non-English majors?(2)What are the major influential factors on higher vocational non-English majors’ English learning anxiety?(3)What is the correlation between higher vocational non-English majors’ English learning anxiety and their English performance?The participants of this study were 172 freshman students(65 female students and 107 male students) from one higher vocational college in Kunming Yunnan Province, among whom 90 were students of liberal arts and 82 were students majoring in science. They all participated in a questionnaire and the statistics results obtained were analyzed via the software SPSS 11.5.The findings firstly showed that the major influential factors on their English learning anxiety are pertaining to language learning strategies, language learning motivation and language learning self-efficacy. The effects of language learningstrategies are the most significant. Secondly, there exists a significant negative correlation between higher vocational non-English majors’ English learning anxiety and their English test scores. It means that the higher students’ English learning anxiety levels are, the lower their English test scores are. English learning anxiety could influence students’ English learning and their English grades from various aspects. Thirdly, all those students experienced foreign language learning anxiety.To some extent, the research findings obtained are likely to play a positive part in improving the efficiency of English teaching among higher vocational non-English majors in the future.