A Systematic Review of Foreign Language Anxiety

Abstract

Foreign language anxiety, also known as language learner apprehension or second language nervousness, has been extensively investigated in academia as it poses particular challenges to language learners. The paper provides a comprehensive review of foreign language anxiety, exploring its definitions, classifications, potential causes, and strategies to reduce such anxiety. Three classifications of anxiety are listed in section 2, while internal and external causes have been carefully examined in section 3 based on previous works. In the end, possible strategies for reducing this kind of anxiety are proposed in Section 4 based on previous analysis of the types and motivations. By analyzing various aspects of anxious emotion in language acquisition process, this review aims to shed light on the importance of addressing this phenomenon to enhance language acquisition and communication skills.