Students’ Speaking Anxiety in Debate Class at English Education Department of Universitas Muhammadiyah Ponorogo

Abstract

Speaking anxiety is a common challenge in English academic debate, where students must perform publicly under evaluative and time-pressured conditions. This study aimed to explore the manifestations, causes, and coping strategies of speaking anxiety among students in an English debate class. Using a descriptive qualitative design, the participants were third-semester students of the English Education Department at Universitas Muhammadiyah Ponorogo. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and classroom observations during debate activities. The findings show that speaking anxiety is a multidimensional and situational phenomenon, reflected in physiological, cognitive, and behavioral responses within trait-based, context-based, situation-based, and audience-based dimensions of communication apprehension. The debate setting itself emerged as the primary trigger of anxiety. Fear of Negative Evaluation was identified as the core cause, particularly related to assessment by lecturers and peers, and was intensified by concerns over linguistic accuracy, argument quality, and social image among classmates. Students employed both problem-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies; however, these strategies mainly functioned as short-term regulation and did not significantly reduce evaluative fears. Overall, speaking anxiety in academic debate is shaped mainly by situational and social factors, indicating the importance of supportive evaluation and psychologically safe debate environments.