The Qualitative Study of Senior Learners’ Anxiety of English Listening Comprehension

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify English listening anxiety factors as perceived by
senior learners, and some factors that might reduce those anxieties in an attempt to understand
fully the role that anxiety might play in learning English. Two senior English learners
participated in this study at a community university in Changhua County. Qualitative interviews
were used for data collection. As a result, one theme that emerged was consistent across all both
participants’ responses. The one theme identified was: factors believed to cause English
listening anxiety. The results of this study provide English teachers with obvious listening
comprehension anxiety factors and instructional activities that should be planned that reduce
English listening anxiety for senior English learners. Also, results of the research are of
significant and may prove beneficial to English language instruction in community colleges for
senior English learners.