Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale
IntroductionSocial interaction, especially in small groups, has become a widely used teaching methodology in the language classroom and can provide learners with a wide range of benefits. It can also place cognitive and affective demands on learners, provoking feelings of social anxiety, which can b...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1602748/full |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849421682875301888 |
|---|---|
| author | Larry J. Xethakis Michael Rupp Brendan R. B. Plummer Toshikazu Kawagoe |
| author_facet | Larry J. Xethakis Michael Rupp Brendan R. B. Plummer Toshikazu Kawagoe |
| author_sort | Larry J. Xethakis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionSocial interaction, especially in small groups, has become a widely used teaching methodology in the language classroom and can provide learners with a wide range of benefits. It can also place cognitive and affective demands on learners, provoking feelings of social anxiety, which can become an obstacle to learning. However, there is a lack of scales to measure social anxiety as it operates in small group work. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of a short measure of interactional anxiety, the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work Scale (IAGWS), grounded in the self-presentation theory of social anxiety.MethodsThe study followed a four-phase development process: (1) item development followed by content validity assessment by experts and English learners; (2) item assessment and exploratory factor analysis to determine dimensionality; (3) the structure was tested using confirmatory analysis, and construct validity and reliability were determined; (4) concurrent validity was assessed through correlation analysis with related scales, and temporal reliability was measured.ResultsThe final scale comprised 11 items with three dimensions: Becoming the Center of Attention (6 items), Working with New People (2 items), and Coping with Ambiguous Situations (3 items). The goodness-of-fit indices (χ2 = 221.379, p < 0.001; TLI = 0.966; CFI = 0.975; RMSEA = 0.077; SRMR = 0.028). AVE values ranged from 0.682 to 0.745. CR ranged from 0.865 to 0.946, omega from 0.871 to 0.953, and alpha from 0.871 to 0.954. Scores on the IAGWS exhibited significant, positive correlations with scores on each criterion instrument. ICC values for temporal reliability were all above 0.8.DiscussionThe IAGWS has been shown to be a reliable and validate measure of interaction anxiety. It can be used in research on the impact of social anxiety on group work, as well as the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing the detrimental influence of anxiety. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4f9db0f24b424a678df89cdc8f0a07c8 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2504-284X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Education |
| spelling | doaj-art-4f9db0f24b424a678df89cdc8f0a07c82025-08-20T03:31:24ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Education2504-284X2025-06-011010.3389/feduc.2025.16027481602748Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) ScaleLarry J. Xethakis0Michael Rupp1Brendan R. B. Plummer2Toshikazu Kawagoe3Department of Community and Social Studies, Tokai University, Kumamoto, JapanDepartment of Community and Social Studies, Tokai University, Kumamoto, JapanSojo International Learning Center, Sojo University, Kumamoto, JapanDepartment of Community and Social Studies, Tokai University, Kumamoto, JapanIntroductionSocial interaction, especially in small groups, has become a widely used teaching methodology in the language classroom and can provide learners with a wide range of benefits. It can also place cognitive and affective demands on learners, provoking feelings of social anxiety, which can become an obstacle to learning. However, there is a lack of scales to measure social anxiety as it operates in small group work. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of a short measure of interactional anxiety, the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work Scale (IAGWS), grounded in the self-presentation theory of social anxiety.MethodsThe study followed a four-phase development process: (1) item development followed by content validity assessment by experts and English learners; (2) item assessment and exploratory factor analysis to determine dimensionality; (3) the structure was tested using confirmatory analysis, and construct validity and reliability were determined; (4) concurrent validity was assessed through correlation analysis with related scales, and temporal reliability was measured.ResultsThe final scale comprised 11 items with three dimensions: Becoming the Center of Attention (6 items), Working with New People (2 items), and Coping with Ambiguous Situations (3 items). The goodness-of-fit indices (χ2 = 221.379, p < 0.001; TLI = 0.966; CFI = 0.975; RMSEA = 0.077; SRMR = 0.028). AVE values ranged from 0.682 to 0.745. CR ranged from 0.865 to 0.946, omega from 0.871 to 0.953, and alpha from 0.871 to 0.954. Scores on the IAGWS exhibited significant, positive correlations with scores on each criterion instrument. ICC values for temporal reliability were all above 0.8.DiscussionThe IAGWS has been shown to be a reliable and validate measure of interaction anxiety. It can be used in research on the impact of social anxiety on group work, as well as the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing the detrimental influence of anxiety.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1602748/fullsocial anxietygroup workinteractionlanguage learningpsychometricvalidity |
| spellingShingle | Larry J. Xethakis Michael Rupp Brendan R. B. Plummer Toshikazu Kawagoe Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale Frontiers in Education social anxiety group work interaction language learning psychometric validity |
| title | Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale |
| title_full | Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale |
| title_fullStr | Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale |
| title_full_unstemmed | Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale |
| title_short | Development and initial validation of the Interaction Anxiety in Group Work (IAGWS) Scale |
| title_sort | development and initial validation of the interaction anxiety in group work iagws scale |
| topic | social anxiety group work interaction language learning psychometric validity |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1602748/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT larryjxethakis developmentandinitialvalidationoftheinteractionanxietyingroupworkiagwsscale AT michaelrupp developmentandinitialvalidationoftheinteractionanxietyingroupworkiagwsscale AT brendanrbplummer developmentandinitialvalidationoftheinteractionanxietyingroupworkiagwsscale AT toshikazukawagoe developmentandinitialvalidationoftheinteractionanxietyingroupworkiagwsscale |