Shame and Anxiety with Foreign Language Learners

Two studies are reported that assess the moderation of shame and related emotions in Polish university students in different English L2 learning scenarios. In the first study, students on speaking and writing courses completed a questionnaire in which they rated the likelihood of their emotional responses to hypothetical situations in learning scenarios that they experienced. In both courses the main reduction in shame was shown in scenarios that provided more private as opposed to public evaluation. The corresponding decreases for fear, anxiety, anger and hopelessness were less pronounced and were dependent on the emotion and scenario. In the second study, results of regular email peer co-operation between students of English at Polish and US universities are reported. In both studies the reduction of the level of shame/embarrassment, conditioned by the presence of less formal communication scenarios, is observed, along with the development of the students’ more positive linguistic self-evaluation.