Dynamic Perspectives on Language Anxiety, Psychological Adjustment, and Personality – A Systematic Review and Multi-Method Longitudinal Study

This thesis examines the dynamic nature of language-related anxiety, psychological adjustment (psychological well-being & life satisfaction), and personality through two complementary studies. Study 1, a systematic review of 49 longitudinal studies, examined how foreign language anxiety (FLA) has been conceptualised and measured across time. The synthesis revealed that FLA is not a fixed trait but a malleable construct, with variability documented at macro-, meso-, and micro-level timescales. Importantly, it highlighted that methodological and temporal choices shape how change is represented, underscoring the need for integrative, multi-method designs to capture both long-term trajectories and short-term fluctuations.
Study 2, conducted with over 400 international students in the United Kingdom, employed a multi-method longitudinal design combining repeated trait-level questionnaires, weekly state assessments, a seven-day intensive experience-sampling protocol, and semi-structured interviews. Trait-level analyses revealed declines in both classroom and outside-classroom English-speaking anxiety, relative stability in psychological well-being, and a modest increase in life satisfaction, with some personality traits moderating these trajectories. State-level analyses captured short-term variability: weekly assessments indicated within-person fluctuations alongside broader developmental trends, while the daily sampling revealed momentary shifts in affective states and sensitivity of personality states to language-use contexts. Interviews complemented these findings by identifying context-specific triggers of English-speaking anxiety and a repertoire of coping strategies ranging from preparation to mindset adjustment.
Together, the two studies provide a dynamic, multi-timescale account of language-related anxiety and psychological adjustment. The findings highlight that stability and variability coexist, that personality shapes both starting points and pathways of change, and that methodological pluralism is essential for capturing the evolving experiences of students in immersion contexts.