Analyzing the Relationship between Motivation, Anxiety and Writing Performances among EFL Students

Abstract

Writing strengthens critical thinking, analytical skills, and the ability to analyze logical information. Writing in English provides access to international information and opportunities for cultural collaboration, allowing students to express ideas and arguments creatively and effectively. Internal and external factors are essential in the development of writing skills. Internal factors include affective dimensions, such as motivation and anxiety, as well as cognitive dimensions. This study focuses on affective factors, namely motivation and anxiety, to understand their influence on writing skills. This study aims to explore the relationship between motivation and writing performance, as well as the relationship between anxiety and writing performance among eighth-semester English students at the University of Islam Malang. This study used a quantitative approach with a correlational design. Research participants were recruited using convenience sampling, with a total sample size of 65 students. Data were collected through the Academic Writing Motivation Questionnaire (AWMQ) by Payne (2012), the Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory (SLWAI) by Cheng (2004), and writing score. To analyze the data, the researcher used SPSS version 25.

The results showed that students' motivation tended to be moderate, with a mean score of 3.34; anxiety levels were low, with a mean score of 49.5; and writing performance also tended to be high, with a mean score of 83.48. Using correlation analysis, the researcher found a positive correlation between motivation and writing performance and a negative correlation between anxiety and writing performance. This indicates that the higher the motivation and the lower the anxiety, the better the students' writing performance tends to be. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended to use factors that influence students' writing performance more thoroughly, considering other affective factors such as self-efficacy, personality, attitude, and gender. Then, participants from different semester levels, other universities, and different school levels should be considered to offer a more thorough comprehension of motivation and anxiety in writing performances among EFL students. In addition, qualitative approaches such as interviews or focus group discussions (FGDs) with questionnaires can be combined to gain deeper insights into students' experiences and perceptions. Key Words: Motivation, anxiety, writing performances, EFL students