Foreign language anxiety among Saudi university students: sources, gender variation, and perceived proficiency

Foreign language anxiety (FLA) is widely recognized as an important emotional factor that influences learners’ success in learning English. This study investigated the level and sources of FLA among Saudi university students enrolled in English for academic purposes courses. It also examined gender differences in anxiety and the relationship between FLA and students’ self-perceived English proficiency. A total of 196 first-year foundation students (144 males and 52 females) from different academic disciplines participated in the study. Data were collected using the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale. Descriptive statistics, independent-samples t-tests, and Pearson's correlation analyses were used to analyze the data. The results showed that students experienced an overall high level of FLA ( M = 3.44, SD = 0.80). Among the three anxiety dimensions, communication apprehension was the most anxiety-inducing factor, followed by test anxiety, while fear of negative evaluation was reported at a moderate level. Gender analysis revealed a significant difference in fear of negative evaluation, with female students reporting higher levels than male students. However, no significant gender differences were found in communication apprehension or test anxiety. In addition, FLA was negatively correlated with students’ self-perceived English proficiency, indicating that higher anxiety was associated with lower confidence in English ability.