The Effects of Online Writing on Heritage Language Anxiety—A Bayesian Analysis

While research into foreign language anxiety (i.e., nervousness towards using the second/additional language) has increased substantially in the last decade, little is known about how language anxiety operates among heritage speakers. Following Tallon’s early works on the topic (2009, 2011) and recent publications (e.g., Sevinç & Dewaele, 2018), the present study further conceptualizes and explores the nature of heritage language anxiety in two different classroom environments at the university level: the traditional Spanish (for second language learners) class, and the Spanish for heritage speakers class. Thirty participants completed (i) the DASS21 scale (Rehka, 2012), (ii) a modified version of the foreign language anxiety scale (Dewaele & MacIntyre, 2014), and (iii) semi structured individual interviews. Participants were distributed between two groups: those in the control group (N=14) were enrolled in a Spanish class for second language learners and those in the experimental group (N=16) were completing a Spanish for heritage speakers course. Results show consistently lower language anxiety rates among participants from the experimental group than among participants from the control group. Additionally, our analyses reveal the role of contextual variables in language anxiety emergence in these two commonly available types of Spanish classrooms.

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Heritage language anxiety and majority language anxiety among Turkish immigrants in the Netherlands

International Journal of Bilingualism ◽

10.1177/1367006916661635 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 22 (2) ◽

pp. 159-179 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Yeşim Sevinç ◽

Jean-Marc Dewaele

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Heritage Language ◽

Language Anxiety ◽

Turkish Immigrants

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Language anxiety in the immigrant context: Sweaty palms?

International Journal of Bilingualism ◽

10.1177/1367006917690914 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 22 (6) ◽

pp. 717-739 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Yeşim Sevinç

Keyword(s):

Language Proficiency ◽

Skin Conductance ◽

Heritage Language ◽

Skin Conductance Level ◽

Oral Proficiency ◽

Language Anxiety ◽

Autonomic Arousal ◽

Language Background ◽

Proficiency Levels ◽

Self Reports

Aims and objectives: This is a proof-of-concept study designed to evaluate the level of language anxiety among immigrants by assessing autonomic arousal associated with heritage language anxiety and majority language anxiety among three generations of Turkish immigrants in the Netherlands. It examines the possible relationship between physiology, bilingual speech, language background variables and language anxiety. Design: Two measures of electrodermal activity – skin conductance level (SCL) and skin conductance response (SCR) – were recorded during a video-retelling task in six experimental phases: baseline (2×), free (bilingual) mode (2×), monolingual heritage-language (Turkish) mode, and monolingual majority-language (Dutch) mode. Participants ( n=30) ranked their level of language anxiety after the Turkish monolingual mode and Dutch monolingual mode. A Likert scale-based questionnaire was used to gather information on language background variables (i.e. age of acquisition, oral language proficiency and frequency of language use). Findings: Third-generation bilinguals, to a greater extent than first- and second-generation bilinguals, demonstrated greater autonomic arousal during the Turkish monolingual mode than during the Dutch one. Participants’ SCLs/SCRs in monolingual modes were strongly correlated with their self-reports on heritage and majority language anxiety. Higher levels of SCLs/SCRs in the Turkish monolingual mode were negatively correlated with participants’ Turkish oral proficiency levels and frequency of daily use of Turkish. The correlations between SCLs/SCRs in the Dutch monolingual mode and participants’ Dutch oral proficiency levels and frequency of daily use of Dutch, on the other hand, were low to non-significant. These findings suggest that language anxiety is also related to social and psychological factors, rather than only self-perceived low language proficiency. Implications: The outcome confirms the presence of language anxiety in immigrant contexts. An interdisciplinary approach that applies physiological measures together with social factors and self-reports can shed further light on language anxiety. Originality: The study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of language anxiety in immigrant contexts and provides evidence for the relationship between anxiety, bilingual speech and autonomic arousal.

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Exploring Heritage Language Anxiety: A Study of Chinese Heritage Language Learners

Modern Language Journal ◽

10.1111/modl.12085 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 98 (2) ◽

pp. 589-611 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Yang Xiao ◽

Ka F. Wong

Keyword(s):

Language Learners ◽

Heritage Language ◽

Language Anxiety ◽

Heritage Language Learners ◽

Chinese Heritage Language

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Toward an interdisciplinary understanding of heritage language anxiety

Oslo Studies in Language ◽

10.5617/osla.8510 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 411-428

Author(s):

Yeşim Sevinç

Keyword(s):

Heritage Language ◽

Electrodermal Activity ◽

Language Anxiety ◽

Immigrant Community ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Complex Interplay ◽

Daily Lives ◽

Emotional Challenges ◽

Turkish Immigrant ◽

Physiological Reactions

This paper summarizes recent research on heritage language anxiety (HLA) that three generations of the Turkish immigrant community in the Netherlands experience in their daily lives. Through an interdisciplinary perspective, it integrates an extended questionnaire (n=113), semi-structured interviews (n=30), and an experiment (n=30) in which physiological responses (i.e. electrodermal activity) are measured during a video-retelling task conducted in monolingual and bilingual modes. Findings illustrate the complex interplay of daily sociolinguistic and socio-emotional challenges, HLA and physiological reactions. In its application of interdisciplinary research, the paper provides a more integrative glimpse into the multifaceted dimensions that underpin heritage language anxiety, particularly in the immigrant context.

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