Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners

Foreign language anxiety significantly affects academic performance, particularly in Chinese language learning. This study aims to meta-analyze the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic performance among individuals learning Chinese as a second language. A meta-analytic approach...

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Main Author: Wenjing Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Education
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1576224/full
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author Wenjing Chen
author_facet Wenjing Chen
author_sort Wenjing Chen
collection DOAJ
description Foreign language anxiety significantly affects academic performance, particularly in Chinese language learning. This study aims to meta-analyze the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic performance among individuals learning Chinese as a second language. A meta-analytic approach was employed, analyzing studies involving 3,633 Chinese language learners and 59 independent effect sizes. The degree of correlation between foreign language anxiety and academic performance was examined, along with potential moderating variables. A moderate negative correlation (r = −0.33) was found between foreign language anxiety and academic performance. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression revealed that age, gender (biological sex), and the type of “anxiety–performance” relationship were moderating variables in this relationship. The findings suggest that (1) anxiety related to writing and listening in Chinese significantly negatively impacts language performance; (2) male learners and older learners are more susceptible to the influence of anxiety on their Chinese learning outcomes; and (3) the negative correlations between reading anxiety and reading performance, as well as listening anxiety and listening performance, are most pronounced. These results imply that educators should help learners recognize and manage anxiety, utilize AI technologies to create supportive learning environments, and foster positive emotional states to mitigate the negative effects of anxiety.
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spelling doaj-art-9aadb8dde4574737b2ce929b2854cbbd2025-08-20T03:13:12ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Education2504-284X2025-05-011010.3389/feduc.2025.15762241576224Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learnersWenjing ChenForeign language anxiety significantly affects academic performance, particularly in Chinese language learning. This study aims to meta-analyze the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic performance among individuals learning Chinese as a second language. A meta-analytic approach was employed, analyzing studies involving 3,633 Chinese language learners and 59 independent effect sizes. The degree of correlation between foreign language anxiety and academic performance was examined, along with potential moderating variables. A moderate negative correlation (r = −0.33) was found between foreign language anxiety and academic performance. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression revealed that age, gender (biological sex), and the type of “anxiety–performance” relationship were moderating variables in this relationship. The findings suggest that (1) anxiety related to writing and listening in Chinese significantly negatively impacts language performance; (2) male learners and older learners are more susceptible to the influence of anxiety on their Chinese learning outcomes; and (3) the negative correlations between reading anxiety and reading performance, as well as listening anxiety and listening performance, are most pronounced. These results imply that educators should help learners recognize and manage anxiety, utilize AI technologies to create supportive learning environments, and foster positive emotional states to mitigate the negative effects of anxiety.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1576224/fullChinese language learnersL2 Chineseforeign language anxietyacademic achievementmeta-analysis
spellingShingle Wenjing Chen
Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
Frontiers in Education
Chinese language learners
L2 Chinese
foreign language anxiety
academic achievement
meta-analysis
title Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
title_full Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
title_fullStr Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
title_full_unstemmed Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
title_short Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in Chinese language learners
title_sort systematic review and meta analysis of the relationship between foreign language anxiety and academic achievement in chinese language learners
topic Chinese language learners
L2 Chinese
foreign language anxiety
academic achievement
meta-analysis
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1576224/full
work_keys_str_mv AT wenjingchen systematicreviewandmetaanalysisoftherelationshipbetweenforeignlanguageanxietyandacademicachievementinchineselanguagelearners