Beyond Anxiety Reduction: Multidimensional Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety in Humor-Integrated PBL

Abstract

Foreign language classroom anxiety remains a major challenge in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) speaking classrooms. Although humor and Project-Based Learning (PBL) have been associated with positive emotional outcomes, little is known about how different dimensions of anxiety change when these approaches are integrated. This study investigated changes in foreign language classroom anxiety and its dimensions—Communication Apprehension (CA), Test Anxiety (TA), and Fear of Negative Evaluation (FNE)—following the implementation of Humor-Integrated Project-Based Learning (HPBL). A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design was employed involving 60 undergraduate EFL students at a private university in Indonesia. Quantitative data were collected using the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) and analyzed using descriptive and non-parametric inferential statistics, while qualitative interview data were analyzed thematically. The findings revealed no significant change in overall anxiety. However, Communication Apprehension decreased significantly (p = .030, r = .40), as did Test Anxiety (p = .004, r = .52), whereas Fear of Negative Evaluation showed a significant posttest difference between groups (p < .001, r = .48). Qualitative findings suggested that students perceived HPBL as promoting a more relaxed and collaborative learning environment while heightening audience awareness and sensitivity to peer evaluation. These findings extend Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) by suggesting that anxiety develops multidimensionally rather than uniformly across instructional contexts and support Control-Value Theory (CVT) by illustrating the coexistence of positive and negative emotional experiences during humor-integrated collaborative speaking tasks. The findings offer practical implications for teachers by suggesting that humor-integrated speaking activities should balance emotional support with strategies for managing communicative and evaluative demands.