Effectiveness of Psychoeducational Group Training on Turkish EFL Learners’ English Speaking Anxiety

Year 2018, Volume: 33 Issue: 4, 1020 - 1037, 31.10.2018

Nurseven Kılıç Ali Eryılmaz , Safiya Yılmaz Dinç

Abstract

Feelings of anxiety, apprehension, and nervousness,
which are widely reported by foreign language (FL) learners, may cause learners
to fail in achieving their desired goals, and they can lose motivation due to the
detrimental effects of these feelings. Therefore, the purpose of this study was
twofold: (1) to investigate the effectiveness of psychoeducational group training
based on cognitive behavioural techniques (CBTs) to reduce the English as a foreign
language (EFL) learners’ English speaking anxiety and (2) to increase the learners’
subjective wellbeing through subjective wellbeing-increasing
activities (SWIAs). This study examined an experimental group and a control group
consisting of eight English preparatory school students in each group. The Positive
and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI),
and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) were used as pre- and post-tests to
identify any improvements over ten sessions. Then, the participants came together
for a follow-up session after one year. The data were analysed with the Mann-Whitney
U Test, the Wilcoxon signed ranks test, and the Friedman test. The findings revealed
that the sessions were effective on all variables, with significant increases in
the post-test scores of the experimental group regarding positive affect, negative
affect, life satisfaction, and state anxiety; however, there were no statistically
significant changes in the post-test scores of the control group for any variables.
In sum, the findings were significantly different in terms of the post-test scores
of the experimental group.

Keywords

Speaking anxiety, subjective well-being, cognitive-behavioral techniques, life satisfaction

İngilizceyi Yabancı Dil Olarak Öğrenen Türk Öğrencilerin İngilizce Konuşma Kaygısına Yönelik Psikoeğitim Grup Çalışması

Abstract

Yabancı dil öğrencilerinin sıklıkla dile getirdikleri
kaygı, gerginlik ve endişe gibi duygular barındırdıkları negatif etkilerden ötürü
hedeflere ulaşamama ve motivasyon kaybına neden olabilmektedir. Bu nedenle, bu çalışmanın
iki amacı vardır: (1) Bilişsel Davranışçı Tekniklere dayalı psikoeğitim grup çalışmasının
Yabancı Dil olarak İngilizce öğrenen Türk öğrencilerinin İngilizce konuşma kaygısını
azaltmadaki etkililiğini incelemek; (2) öznel iyi oluşu artırmaya yönelik aktivitelerle
öğrencilerin öznel iyi oluşlarını artırmaktır. Çalışmada, her iki grupta sekiz hazırlık
sınıfı öğrencisi olmak üzere bir deneysel ve bir kontrol grubu yer almaktadır. On
oturum boyunca her bir oturumda ilerlemenin olup olmadığını test etmek amacıyla
Pozitif ve Negatif Duygulanım Ölçeği, Durum-Süreklilik Kaygı Ölçeği ve Yaşam Doyumu
Ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Katılımcılar, oturumların tamamlanmasından bir yıl sonra
bir izleme oturumuna katılmışlardır. Veriler Mann-Whitney U Testi, Wilcoxon İşaretli
Sıralar Testi ve Friedman Testi ile analize alınmıştır. Bulgular; deney grubundaki
katılımcıların yer aldığı oturumların pozitif duygulanım, negatif duygulanım, yaşam
doyumu ve durumluk kaygı puanlarının dâhil olduğu tüm son-testlerde değişkenler
üzerinde etkili olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Ancak, kontrol grubunda yer alan katılımcıların
son-test puanlarında herhangi bir değişken açısından istatistiksel bir farklılığa
rastlanmamıştır. Özetle, deney grubunun son puanlarında anlamlı bir farklılık olduğu
saptanmıştır.

Keywords

Konuşma kaygısı, öznel iyi-oluş, bilişsel-davranışçı teknikler, yaşam doyumu

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