final draft

Exploring Psychological Factors Affecting Speaking of English as a Foreign Language
Acknowledgments
I am indebted to many people who have helped me both directly and indirectly. I can
only mention a few of them here, Pr. EL Boujamai, Boujemaa, who kindly provided me with
detailed comments on nearly every aspect of the manuscript. I have also to thank Pr.
Benyoussef, Mounir for his support; I would like to thank the freshmen of department of
English, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Ain Chock, Casablanca, for their contributions in
responding to the questionnaire.
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Contents
Acknowledgments................................................................................................................................1
Contents...............................................................................................................................................2
Introduction: ........................................................................................................................................4
I. Speaking in Applied Linguistics:..........................................................................................................5
1. The nature of speaking.....................................................................................................................5
2. The view of the literature on the causes and solutions to overcome the psychological factors that
hinder learners from speaking................................................................................................................6
a. Shyness..........................................................................................................................................6
i. Causes of shyness........................................................................................................................7
ii. Possible solutions to overcome shyness....................................................................................8
b. Fear of making mistakes................................................................................................................9
i. Causes of fear of making mistakes..............................................................................................9
ii. Possible solutions to overcome fear of making mistakes............................................................9
c. Lack of self-confidence..................................................................................................................10
i. Causes of lack of self-confidence...............................................................................................10
ii. Possible solutions to overcome lack of self-confidence............................................................10
d. Lack of motivation .......................................................................................................................11
i. Causes of lack of motivation......................................................................................................11
ii. Possible solutions to overcome lack of motivation...................................................................11
e. Anxiety ........................................................................................................................................12
i. Causes of anxiety .....................................................................................................................12
ii. Possible solutions to overcome anxiety....................................................................................13
II. Methodology..................................................................................................................................13
1. Research setting and participants...................................................................................................13
2. Techniques of collecting data .........................................................................................................13
III. Research findings and discussions..................................................................................................14
1. Shyness :..........................................................................................................................................16
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2. Fear of making mistakes..................................................................................................................18
3. Lack of self-confidence....................................................................................................................21
4. Lack of motivation...........................................................................................................................24
5. Anxiety ............................................................................................................................................28
IV. The psychological factor that most hinders the participants from speaking after the analysis and
the solutions to overcome this factor as suggested by them. .............................................................29
CONCLUSION .....................................................................................................................................31
BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................................................32
APPENDIX............................................................................................................................................33
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Introduction:
Speaking is always regarded as the most challenging productive skill by the learners of
English as a second or foreign language. Furthermore, most students evaluate their success in
language learning as well as their effectiveness of their English course on the basis of how
much they feel they have improved their speaking proficiency Richard(2008, p.19). Early
researches on second language acquisition (SLA) focused on cognitive variables such as
language aptitude, intelligence, learning styles etc. however, affective and emotional variables
have become very important in the area of SLA. The definition of affective variables is
“emotionally relevant characteristics of the individual that influence how he/she will respond
to any situation” (Gardener and Macintyre 1992, p.25).
Thus, the purposes of this study is first to explore psychological factors, such as
shyness, lack of motivation or confidence, anxiety, and fear of mistakes that hinder students
from speaking and the causes of these factors, furthermore the possible solution to overcome
these factors. The data were obtained through classroom questionnaire. Concerning findings,
the study revealed that psychological factors such as shyness, fear of making mistakes and
lack of self-confidence are the most factors that hinder students from speaking in English
class. In terms of findings, those factors are commonly caused by fear of negative evaluation
from the teacher, fear of being laughed at by the peers, and many students keep thinking that
the other students are better at speaking than they are. Interestingly, the vast majority of the
students answered ‘disagree’ and ‘strongly disagree’ the question concerning not having
motivation in English class. The possible solutions to overcome those psychological factors,
most students believe that encouraging and helping them to be confident to speak English
should be taken into consideration. These findings suggest that both the teachers and the
students should be more aware of the students’ hindrance to speak in English class.
In this research, I will be using the quantitative method: through questionnaire and
qualitative method: via open-ended questions. In the questionnaire which is composed of 25
questions, I used Likert scale questionnaire and I will be using the software SPSS to analyze
the data. For the open-ended questions I will analyze the data using my background and
experience as an instructor of English as a foreign language. Because of the level of English
needed to answer the questionnaire and the open-ended questions, I have chosen the students
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enrolled in S2 first year in English department FLSH, Ain Chock, Hassan II University in
Casablanca as a sample of my study. In this research I have adopted the mixed methods
research which involves the combination of the quantitative and qualitative research, because
it allows me to benefit from the best of the both paradigms as Dornyei (2007, p. 45) mentions
in his book on research methods in applied linguistics “It allows the researchers obtain data
about both the individual and the broader societal context”.
This paper is composed of three main parts, the first one deals with the view of the
literature on the psychological factors that hinder speaking, their causes, and the solutions
offered to overcome these factors. Second, the research setting and participants and the
methodology used to collect and analyze the data. Finally, the research findings and the
discussions; I will introduce the psychological factors that the participants most suffer from,
the causes as perceived by them and the discussions of the participants’ solutions to overcome
these factors.
I. Speaking in Applied Linguistics:
1. The nature of speaking
Many definitions have been given to speaking by experts in language teaching and
learning. Brown (2001, p. 267) mentions in his book that someone speaks a language means
he or she can carry on a conversation reasonably and competently. Besides, he states that the
benchmark of successful language acquisition is always the demonstration of an ability to
accomplish pragmatic goals through interactive discourse with the other speakers of the
language.
Nunan (1991,pp. 40-41) decomposes speaking and oral interaction into three main
components or dimensions: The first is relating to the interactional contexts which could be
for service purposes such as job interview, booking a restaurant, buying stamps, or for social
purposes like dinner party, coffee break, theater queue etc. The second is relating to the
different functions which can be performed in these contexts: it could be expository
information (narrate, describe, instruct, compare), or evaluative information (explain, justify,
predict, and decide). The third is relating to the management of interaction and negotiation of
meaning.
Ur (1991, p. 120) states that all of the four skills (listening, speaking, reading and
writing), speaking seems to be the most important: people who know a language are referred
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to as ‘speakers’ of that language. Furthermore, she mentions that most foreign language
learners are primarily interested in learning to speak.
There are many difficulties or problems that hinder learners from speaking. To name a
few, they are psychological factors or what Brown (2001, p. 281) calls affective factors.
“One of the major obstacles have to overcome in learning to speak is the anxiety
generated over the risks of blurring things out that are wrong, stupid or
incomprehensible. Because of the language ego that informs people that ‘you are
what you speak,’ learners are reluctant to be judged by the hearers”
In addition, Brown (2001, p. 61) defines language ego as follows:
“As human beings learning to use a second language, they also develop a new mode
of thinking, feeling and acting—a second identity. The new language ego,
intertwined with the second language, can easily create within the learner a sense of
fragility, defensiveness, and a rising of inhibitions.”
Thus, this raising of inhibitions is also explained by Ur (1991, p. 121) when she
explains that contrary to the other skills (reading, listening, and writing) speaking requires
some degree of real-time exposure to an audience. As a result, learners are often inhibited
about trying to speak in a foreign language. She states the causes as follows: learners are
worried about making mistakes, fearful of criticism or losing face, or simply shy of the
attention that their speech attracts.
2. The view of the literature on the causes and solutions to overcome the
psychological factors that hinder learners from speaking.
I have already mentioned that there are some psychological factors that affect speaking
in general. These are the causes and some possible solutions to overcome these factors that
hinder students from speaking in English class: shyness, fear of making mistakes, lack of self-
confidence, lack of motivation and anxiety.
a. Shyness
Some people, and because of many different reasons suffer from intense shyness that
keeps them from social interaction which negatively affects their studies and relationship.
However, the vast majority of students who suffer from shyness in class are not severely shy
people and usually their shyness is related to other psychological factors such as the lack of
self-esteem. Here is the definition of shyness adapted from Encyclopedia of Psychology:
Shyness is the tendency to feel awkward, worried or tense during social
encounters, especially with unfamiliar people. Severely shy people may have
physical symptoms like blushing, sweating, a pounding heart or upset stomach;
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negative feelings about themselves; worries about how others view them; and a
tendency to withdraw from social interactions. Most people feel shy at least
occasionally. Some people’s shyness is so intense, however, that it can keep them
from interacting with others even when they want or need to— leading to problems
in relationships and at work.
The diagnosis of shy students behavior is deeply characterized in an article published
online November 2013, by Marian Condon, Lisa Ruth-Sahd, York College of Pennsylvania,
York, USA Titled as: ‘Responding to introverted and shy students: Best practice guidelines
for educators and advisors’.
Shy students have difficulty with small talk, they are slow to share their feelings and
typically do not reciprocate when feelings are disclosed by others. The shy person
might well want to interact more, but would be prevented from doing so by fear of
social disapproval Shy individuals see themselves as somehow personally deficient,
which leads to feelings of self-blame and shame.
This theory is also supported by the result of this research in which most students fail
to perform in a speaking class because of their shyness. That is, shyness is an important factor
that hinders students from speaking.
i. Causes of shyness
The shy person might well want to interact more, but would be prevented from doing
so by fear of social disapproval. Shy individuals see themselves as somehow personally
deficient, which leads to feelings of self-blame and shame. Here are three main causes of
shyness as adapted from the website: http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.
a. Lack of social interaction – children who have been isolated from others for the
first few years of their lives may not have the social skills that enable easy
interaction with unfamiliar people.
Very few those who suffer from this factor because most of the students have had studied
among their peers.
b. Harsh criticism – children who are teased or bullied by significant people in
their lives (parents, siblings and other close family members or friends) may tend
towards shyness.
I think that harsh criticism could be one of the mean causes of shyness.
c. Fear of failure – children who have been pushed too many times beyond their
capabilities (and then made to feel bad when they didn’t ‘measure up’) may have
a fear of failure that presents itself as shyness.
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Numerous students suffer from shyness because of fear failure; the present study
confirms that fear of making mistakes, which is related to fear of failure, is one of the most
significant causes that hinder speaking.
Introverted and shy students are typically uncomfortable with being called upon to
answer questions in class. A quote from Robert J. Coplan (2014, p. 275), a shyness researcher
in Ottawa, Canada, sums up the plight of shy and introverted students in contemporary
schools and colleges:
“Whoever designed the context of the modern classroom was certainly not thinking
of shy quiet students. With often crowded high stimulation rooms and a focus on oral
performance-- the modern classroom is the quiet student nightmare – if a teacher
asks a question and the student doesn’t answer right away, the most common thing is
the teacher doesn’t have the time to sit and wait but has to go on to someone else,
and in the back of their head might think the student isn’t as intelligent or didn’t do
the homework”
ii. Possible solutions to overcome shyness
Many solutions have been given to overcome shyness in a speaking class, Brown
(2001, p. 62) offers some possible solutions: as a teacher you should overtly display
supportive attitude to your students. In your lesson plan, your techniques choices, the
activities you choose for your students, should be cognitively challenging but not
overwhelming at an affective level. Considering students language ego should help you
determine; who to call on, who to ask to volunteer, when to correct the student’s speech
errors, who to place in which small groups or pairs, how tough you can be with a student.
Best practices summary adapted from: M. Condon, L. Ruth-Sahd/Open Journal of
Nursing 3 (2013, p. 509); the following practices related to teaching and advising are
recommended for faculty consideration:
1) Accept introversion and shyness as legitimate and normal features of personality.
Do not convey disapproval of related behaviors or misinterpret them as evidence of
dullness, disinterest, disrespect, etc.
2) Allocate a reasonable portion of class time to introvert/shy person-friendly
activities such as listening to lectures, watching videos, reflecting quietly and
working on projects individually.
3) Refrain from calling on students randomly, particularly with no advance warning.
Consider announcing discussion topics ahead of time.
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4) Consider discarding one-size-fits-all constellations of grading criteria in favor of
a range of options that allows customization. Collaborate with students in the goal-
setting process.
5) Provide students who are attempting to improve their mastery of extroverting
behaviors (such as volunteering to answer questions in class and participating in the
delivery phase of presentations) with instrumental and emotional support. Take care
not to criticize them in front of the class.
6) Where appropriate, consider including basic information about introversion and
shyness among the topics addressed in courses.
7) When students confide interpersonal or academic difficulties that may be related
to Type or shyness, provide relevant information and apprise them of appropriate
campus and on-line resources.
8) When students express dissatisfaction with their major area of study, assist them
in considering alternatives.
b. Fear of making mistakes
Most of students tend to be quiet in a speaking class because of fear of making
mistakes when they speak. To illustrate this, a vast majority of students in this research
confirmed that they don’t participate in English speaking class because of fear of making
mistakes.
i. Causes of fear of making mistakes
There many causes of fear of making mistakes and as reported in the students
questionnaire in this research such as; I am afraid of being laughed at, I am afraid of negative
evaluation from my classmates, I am afraid of negative evaluation from my teacher, I feel
afraid that the teacher will highlight grammatical mistakes while I am speaking.
ii. Possible solutions to overcome fear of making mistakes
The students should be aware that making mistakes is a normal process in language
acquisition and language learning. Thus, they should not be afraid of making mistakes. In the
literature, many solutions that both the learners and the teachers should be aware of were
given to overcome this factor.
Brown (2001, 63) calls this factor risk taking and advises teachers to encourage
students to take calculated risks and look at the language as a game where the learners are
gamblers,
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“Successful language learners, in their realistic appraisal of themselves as
vulnerable beings yet capable of accomplishing task, must be willing to become
‘gamblers’ in the game of the language, to attempt to produce and to interpret
language that is a bit beyond their absolute certainty”
Brown (2001, p. 63) also advises the teachers to create in the classroom an atmosphere
that encourage students to try out the language. He advises the teachers to make reasonable
challenges in their techniques: make them neither too easy neither too hard. The teacher
should respond to the students’ errors or risky attempts by positive affirmation, praising them
for trying and respond warmly to their attempts.
c. Lack of self-confidence
Self-confidence or ‘I can do it’ factor is very important in language learning process.
However, there are many students that suffer from lack of self-confidence in an English
speaking classroom environment as stated by the participants in this research. Many
specialists in language learning and teaching diagnosed the causes of the lack of self-
confidence and they offered some possible solutions to overcome this factor.
i. Causes of lack of self-confidence
There are many causes of lack of self-confidence. To name a few, some students keep
thinking that the other students are better at speaking than they are. The way a person believes
in his or her ability to accomplish a task as Brown (2001, p. 62) states. He also adds that the
lack of self-confidence is due to the lack of encouragement from the teacher.
ii. Possible solutions to overcome lack of self-confidence
Many solutions have been given to both students and teachers to overcome the
learner’s lack of self-confidence. The student’s belief in his or her capability of accomplishing
a task is very important in attaining that task, the phrase ‘yes I can’ is very important in
building self-confidence and accomplishing any task. Brown (2001, p. 62) states,
“Learners’ belief that they indeed are fully capable of accomplishing a task is at
least partially a factor in their eventual success in attaining the task.”
The teacher should give verbal and non-verbal assurances and encouragement to the
students. In this context brown emphasizes that the activities in the classroom should logically
start with simple techniques and simple aspects. Students then can establish a sense of
accomplishments that encourage them to take the more difficult next step.
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d. Lack of motivation
Dorneyi (2001, p. 7) states that motivation explains why people decide to do
something, how hard they are going to pursue it and how long they are going to sustain the
activity. Brown (2001, p. 59) presents the motivation factor in two aspects; intrinsic
motivation which refers to the love of the internal and not material outcomes of the deed such
as self-fulfillment, pride…etc, and extrinsic motivation which refers to external outcomes
such as having a better job, more opportunities…etc. These two concepts are massively
reported by the students in this research.
i. Causes of lack of motivation
Many studies were conducted on the motivational factor in learning a second or
foreign language. The famous one is the one done by Gardner and Lambert (1972, p.173) a
key tenet of this Canadian study is that attitudes related to L2 community (e.g. Anglophones
learners’ feeling about the francophone) exert a strong influence on one’s L2 learning. This
makes good sense: as in our Moroccan community many learners of French were not
successful at it because they looked at it as the language of the colonizers. It is also assumed
that the language learners’ goals fall into two broad categories as it is reported by the students
in this research. In this context, Dornyei (2001, p. 16) decomposes motivation in two
categories:
Integrative orientation, which reflects a positive disposition towards the L2 group
and the desire to interact with or even become similar to valued member of that
community
Instrumental orientation, where the language learning is primarily associated with
the potential gains of L2 proficiency, such as getting a better job or a high salary.
ii. Possible solutions to overcome lack of motivation
I find this quote of Martin Ford (1992, 202) well said…
“There are no magic motivational buttons that can be pushed to ‘make’ people want
to learn, work hard and act in a responsible manner. Similarly, no one can be
directly forced to learn something…facilitations, not control, should be the guiding
idea in attempts to motivate humans.”
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I strongly agree with Dorneyi (2001, p. 22), “that motivational strategies cannot be
applied successfully in a ‘motivational vacuum’”; certain conditions must be present before
any attempts to generate motivation. He cites those conditions as follows:
 Appropriate teacher behavior and a good relationship with the students;
 A pleasant and supportive classroom atmosphere;
 A cohesive learner group with appropriate group norms.
I find these motivational strategies Dorneyi(2001, 35-36) very interesting; the
teacher’s enthusiasm and taking the students’ learning very seriously.
Brown (2001, p. 59) gives great importance to the intrinsic motivation within the
learner, and it is the role of the teacher to promote this factor as a motivational strategy:
“The most powerful rewards are those that are intrinsically motivated within the
learner. Because the behavior stems from needs, wants, or desires within oneself, the
behavior itself is self-rewarding; therefore, no externally administrated reward is
necessary”
e. Anxiety
Anxiety is considered one of the affective filters in the theory of affective filter
hypothesis which states how affective factors relate to the second language acquisition
process. Krashen(1982, p. 30) claims that:
“Anxiety: Low anxiety appears to be conducive to second language acquisition,
whether measured as personal or classroom anxiety.”
That is, the findings of this research support this hypothesis that anxiety is the factor
that hinders many students from speaking.
i. Causes of anxiety
In the study of Horwitz and Cope (1986, p. 70) we find three main causes of anxiety;
communication apprehension which refers to the students low capability to communicate in
the target language and as a result many students feel anxious. The second cause is test
anxiety, the students’ fear of being tested. The third cause is the fear of negative evaluation
from the classmates or the teacher.
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ii. Possible solutions to overcome anxiety
Krashen(1982, p. 48) believes that Schumann's Acculturation Hypothesis is the most
effective solution to lower the affective filter, anxiety in our case, in second or foreign
language acquisition:
“The Acculturation Hypothesis has considerable merit. It may be the case that
Acculturation is the most effective way of lowering the affective filter.”
On the other side, Nunan( 1991, p. 234) states:
“the proponents of the humanistic approach believe that if learners can be
encouraged to adopt the right attitudes, interests, and motivation in the target
language and culture, as well as in the learning environment in which they find
themselves, then successful learning will occur”
Dorneyi(2001, p. 117) believes in encouraging self-evaluation by promoting
motivational attributions, providing motivational feedback, increasing learner’s satisfaction,
and offering rewards and grades in a motivating manner.
II. Methodology
1. Research setting and participants
This study was undertaken in English department, faculty of literature and humanities,
Casablanca. The number of the participants is 36 freshmen. This study was conducted to find
out the participants perspective related to psychological factors affecting speaking.
2. Techniques of collecting data
In this study, I used two techniques to collect the data: the questionnaire and the open-
ended questions. The questionnaire was conducted to find out about the psychological factors
that most hinder speaking. The questionnaire is composed of 25 questions about the
psychological factors(five questions per each factor) using Likert scale method in which the
participants have to mark one of the five given choices; strongly agree, agree, neutral,
disagree, strongly disagree. For each factor, I selected five questions from the standard
questionnaire of that factor except lack of motivation factor for which I selected just three
questions and I introduced two questions about intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. For the
open-ended questions, for each factor I asked the question: what are the solutions you suggest
to overcome the given factor? The table .1 on the appendix at the bottom shows the
questionnaire and the open-ended questions.
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III. Research findings and discussions
As we can see from the table.2 and graph.1, the age 18 years old is the highest
percentage; 19.2
Table.2
Age
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid
18 144 19,2 19,2 19,2
19 95 12,7 12,7 31,9
20 140 18,7 18,7 50,5
21 63 8,4 8,4 58,9
22 132 17,6 17,6 76,5
23 69 9,2 9,2 85,7
24 24 3,2 3,2 88,9
25 25 3,3 3,3 92,3
28 28 3,7 3,7 96,0
30 30 4,0 4,0 100,0
Total 750 100,0 100,0
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Graph.1
Table.3 and the pie chart show the percentage of female and male in this study.
Table.3
Gender
Percent
Valid
1 Male 287 38,3 38,3 38,3
2 Female 463 61,7 61,7 100,0
Total 750 100,0 100,0
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1. Shyness :
More than half of the participants; 52.4 % agree and 2.5% strongly agree that they
feel shy to speak in front of people.
3. I am shy to speak in front of people
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 19 2,5 2,5 2,5
2 Agree 393 52,4 52,4 54,9
3 Neutral 111 14,8 14,8 69,7
4 Disagree 157 20,9 20,9 90,7
5 Strongly Disagree 70 9,3 9,3 100,0
Total 750 100,0 100,0
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However, about the half of the participants feel shy if everyone is looking at them:
17
4. I feel shy if everyone is looking at me
Percent
Valid
2 Agree 301 40,1 40,1 48,0
3 Neutral 166 22,1 22,1 70,1
4 Disagree 172 22,9 22,9 93,1
Total 750 100,0 100,0

After the analysis, we see that the majority of the participants suffer from shyness, especially
when everyone is looking at them.
2. Fear of making mistakes
The majority of the participants suffer from fear of making mistakes in an English
speaking class and the causes are: I am afraid of being laughed at, I am afraid of negative
evaluation from my classmates, I am afraid of negative evaluation from my teacher, I feel
afraid that the teacher will highlight grammatical mistakes while speaking.
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7. I am afraid of being laughed at
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 121 16,1 16,1 16,1
2 Agree 230 30,7 30,7 46,8
3 Neutral 133 17,7 17,7 64,5
4 Disagree 189 25,2 25,2 89,7
Total 750 100,0 100,0
9. I am afraid of negative evaluation from my teacher
Percent
Valid 1 Strongly Agree 175 23,3 23,3 23,3
2 Agree 268 35,7 35,7 59,1
3 Neutral 122 16,3 16,3 75,3
4 Disagree 135 18,0 18,0 93,3
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8. I am afraid of negative evaluation from my classmates
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 121 16,1 16,1 16,1
2 Agree 313 41,7 41,7 57,9
3 Neutral 101 13,5 13,5 71,3
4 Disagree 160 21,3 21,3 92,7
Total 750 100,0 100,0

Total 750 100,0 100,0
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3. Lack of self-confidence
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More than 50% suffer from lack of self-confidence; “I keep thinking that the other
students are better at speaking than I am” was marked by 39.3% ‘agree’ + 16% ‘strongly
agree’
12. I keep thinking that the other students are better at speaking than I am.
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 123 16,4 16,4 16,4
2 Agree 295 39,3 39,3 55,7
3 Neutral 218 29,1 29,1 84,8
4 Disagree 66 8,8 8,8 93,6
Total 750 100,0 100,0
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13. I don’t volunteer to answer oral questions in class
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 78 10,4 10,4 10,4
2 Agree 310 41,3 41,3 51,7
3 Neutral 102 13,6 13,6 65,3
4 Disagree 207 27,6 27,6 92,9
Total 750 100,0 100,0

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4. Lack of motivation
For the lack of the motivational factor, the majority of students marked disagree or
neutral. The highest percentage of the students chose to enroll in English department because
they love English studies; 45.2% + 33.1 %= 75.3%. It’s clear from the analysis that the
majority of these participants don’t suffer from lack of motivation.
16. I have no motivation while I am listening to the teacher
Percent
Valid
2 Agree 147 19,6 19,6 25,5
3 Neutral 212 28,3 28,3 53,7
4 Disagree 297 39,6 39,6 93,3
Total 750 100,0 100,0
17. I don’t feel motivated because of uninspiring teaching and lack of positive feedback
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Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 107 14,3 14,3 14,3
2 Agree 173 23,1 23,1 37,3
3 Neutral 222 29,6 29,6 66,9
4 Disagree 228 30,4 30,4 97,3
Total 750 100,0 100,0
19. I chose to enroll in English Studies because I will have many good job opportunities after
graduation
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 181 24,1 24,1 24,1
2 Agree 407 54,3 54,3 78,4
3 Neutral 102 13,6 13,6 92,0
20. I chose to enroll in English Studies because I loved to
Percent
Valid
1 Strongly Agree 248 33,1 33,1 33,1
2 Agree 339 45,2 45,2 78,3
3 Neutral 64 8,5 8,5 86,8
4 Disagree 38 5,1 5,1 91,9
Total 750 100,0 100,0
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5. Anxiety
About 44% among the participants suffer from the anxiety in an English speaking
class.
22. I feel anxious if someone asks me to explain something in English
Percent
Valid
2 Agree 186 24,8 24,8 30,5
3 Neutral 245 32,7 32,7 63,2
4 Disagree 206 27,5 27,5 90,7
Total 750 100,0 100,0
25. I still get worried about speaking, even after preparation
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Percent
Valid
2 Agree 352 46,9 46,9 49,3
3 Neutral 99 13,2 13,2 62,5
4 Disagree 211 28,1 28,1 90,7
Total 750 100,0 100,0
IV. The psychological factor that most hinders the participants from
speaking after the analysis and the solutions to overcome this factor
as suggested by them.
From the findings, we notice that the factor that most hinders the students from
speaking in English class is: Fear of making mistakes. It was reported by about 60% of the
participants. The principal causes as reported from the questionnaire are: the question of fear
of being laughed at is marked by 30.7% ‘Agree’ plus 16.1% ‘Strongly Agree’, fear of
negative evaluation from the teacher is marked by 35.7% plus 23.3%. Anxiety and shyness
which is sometimes related to lack of self-confidence are all also important factors that hinder
students from speaking after the fear of making mistake factor.
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Many suggestions have been given by the participant to overcome fear of making
mistakes factor. One student suggested: “I should practice English more and more”. Another
student suggested: “I try to convince myself each time that everybody is doing mistakes to
learn”. Another student suggested: “study grammar and read in English”.
For shyness factor, one student suggested: “I think that practice speaking in front of
people would help”. Another student proposed: “I try to talk in front of my mirror”. Another
student wrote: “I need someone to encourage me so as to overcome this factor”
For the anxiety factor, one student suggested: “I try hard not to think about it”.
Another student wrote “I try to take a long breath before I speak”.
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CONCLUSION
In reference to the aim of the study, it could be concluded that students suffer from
psychological factors such as shyness, fear of making mistakes, lack of self-confidence and
anxiety that hinder them from speaking in an English class. The factors like fear of making
mistakes were commonly caused by fear of negative evaluation from the teacher or their
peers. Likewise, concerning shyness, many students recognized that they suffer from this
factor. For the possible solutions to overcome the psychological factors that hinder students
from speaking, many students believed that encouraging them to be more confident to speak
in English class should be taken into consideration. Thus, encouraging and supporting
students motivate them to actively participate in speaking activities. This suggests the need to
create appropriate learning environment in classroom.
31

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Brown, H.D. (2001). Teaching by Principles. An Interactive Approach to Language
Pedagogy. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall
Coplan, Robert J. , Julie C. Bowker, (2014).The Handbook of Solitude: Psychological
Perspectives on Social Isolation, Social Withdrawal, and Being Alone. Wiley-Blackwell.
Dornyei, Z. (2007). Research Methods in Applied Linguistics: Quantitative, Qualitative, and
Mixed Methodologies. Oxford University.
Ford, M. E. (1992). Motivating humans: Goals, emotions, and personal agency beliefs.
Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Gardner, R. C. & Lambert, W. E. (1972). Attitudes and motivation in second language
learning. Newbury House: Rowley, MA
Gardner, R. C., &MacIntyre, P. D. (1992). A student's contribution to Second Language
Learning:Part I, Cognitive Factors. Language Teaching.
Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. E and Cope, J. (1986).Foreign language classroom
anxiety.Modern Language Journal, 70
Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign Language Classroom anxiety.
The Modern Language Journal, 125-132
Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Oxford:
Pergamo
Marian Condon, Lisa Ruth-Sahd Published Online November 2013
http://www.scirp.org/journal/ojn/
Nunan, D. (1991). Language Teaching Methodology. Hemel Hempstead: Prentice
Hall.Quadir,
Richard, J.C. (2008). Teaching Listening and Speaking: From Theory to Practice. Cambridge:
Cambridge Press University
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Ur, P. (1991). A Course in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.Viswat,
The encyclopedia of psychology, published online.
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/shyness_and_children
APPENDIX
Table. 1
Psychological Factors Affecting Speaking QUESTIONNAIRE
Name:
Gender: Male Female
Age:
INSTRUCTIONS: Please read each item carefully and decide to what extent it is characteristic of your feelings
and behavior.
Please read each statement and mark the chosen Answer with an “X”.
Please mark chosen answer with an “X” Strongly
Agree
Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly
Disagree
Shyness
1. I have trouble looking someone right in the eye
2. I am usually a person who initiates conversation
3. I am shy to speak in front of people
4. I feel shy if everyone is looking at me
5. I am shy when talking to someone of the opposite sex
Fear of Making Mistakes
6. I am not afraid of making mistakes while I am speaking
7. I am afraid of being laughed at
8. I am afraid of negative evaluation from my classmates
9. I am afraid of negative evaluation from my teacher
10. I feel afraid that the teacher will highlight grammatical
mistakes while speaking
33

Lack of confidence
11. I feel confident speaking English in class
12. I keep thinking that the other students are better at speaking
than I am.
13. I don’t volunteer to answer oral questions in class
14. I am afraid of trying new things
15. I don’t feel comfortable when the teacher asks me in front
of entire class
Lack of Motivation
16. I have no motivation while I am listening to the teacher
17. I don’t feel motivated because of uninspiring teaching and
lack of positive feedback
18. Feeling not motivated while speaking because of
classmates' laughter and teacher's inappropriate reactions
19. I chose to enroll in English Studies because I will have
many good job opportunities after graduation
20. I chose to enroll in English Studies because I loved to
Anxiety
21. I get confused and worried when I am speaking in the
class
22. I feel anxious if someone asks me to explain something in
English
23. I usually feel easy expressing myself in English language
in the classroom
24. I get nervous when the teacher asks questions
25. I still get worried about speaking, even after preparation
From these factors below, choose the one that hinders you the most from speaking in class:
1. Anxiety? What are the solutions you suggest to overcome your anxiety?
………………………………………………………………………………………………….................................
2. Shyness? What are the solutions you suggest to overcome your shyness?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
3. Fear of Mistakes? What are the solutions you suggest to overcome your fear of mistakes?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
4. Lack of Confidence? What are the solutions you suggest to overcome your lack of confidence?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5. Lack of Motivation? What are the solutions you suggest to overcome your lack of motivation?
34

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
If you are interested in the results of this research, please write down your e-mail.
Email:………………………………………………
Thank you very much for your contributions.
35

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