Skill-specific self-efficacy and foreign language anxiety: A study of EFL learners

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between skill-specific self-efficacy and foreign language anxiety (FLA) among Japanese university EFL learners, addressing a key gap in second language acquisition research. Although FLA is known to hinder cognitive processing, participation, and performance, limited research has explored how learners’ confidence in specific language skills—speaking, listening, reading, and writing—shapes their anxiety. Using a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 65 first-year Japanese university students enrolled in an advanced English elective course. Participants completed questionnaires measuring skill-specific self-efficacy, FLA, and personal and pedagogical factors. The results show substantial variation in learners’ confidence across skills, with the highest self-efficacy in reading and the lowest in speaking. Significant negative correlations were found between FLA and all four self-efficacy dimensions, with speaking self-efficacy demonstrating the strongest association. Regression analyses confirmed that productive skills, particularly speaking, were the strongest predictors of anxiety. Mediation analyses further revealed that perfectionism, fear of failure, teacher feedback style, and classroom atmosphere significantly mediated the relationship between speaking self-efficacy and FLA, with teacher feedback showing the largest indirect effect. These findings underscore the need for pedagogical approaches that develop skill-specific self-efficacy and address affective and contextual factors to reduce anxiety in Japanese EFL classrooms.