Young Women from an Understudied Student Population: Worries, Writing Anxiety, and Performance in a General Education Course

Authors

  • Maura Pilotti

    Department of Sciences and Human Studies, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia

    Cognitive Science Research Center, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia

     
  • Maryam BoJulaia

    Department of Sciences and Human Studies, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia

    Cognitive Science Research Center, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia
  • Khadija El Alaoui

    Department of Sciences and Human Studies, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia

    Cognitive Science Research Center, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, P.O. Box 1664, Al Khobar 31952, Saudi Arabia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i12.12475
Received: 15 October 2025 | Revised: 7 November 2025 | Accepted: 12 November 2025 | Published Online: 5 December 2025

Abstract

For second-language freshmen enrolled in a topical course of the general education curriculum, writing anxiety can be an obstacle to desirable performance. A key component of writing anxiety is worrying, which depletes students’ working memory of the necessary resources to carry out writing. This study first examined the extent to which, before the final exam, students experienced second-language writing anxiety and particular worries. Then, it assessed whether these epiphenomena were related to one another and could account for poor performance. Participants belonged to an understudied population of female undergraduate students whose access to gender-equitable education is of recent making. Purposeful sampling yielded 203 English-Arabic bilingual speakers. Since most of the evidence about second-language writing anxiety had been collected from courses specifically devoted to writing, students were selected from a writing-intensive topical course of the general education curriculum taught in English. Before the final exam, students’ writing anxiety and worries were measured. Final exam performance was then collected. Female students were mainly worried about time and academic performance, and reported the most writing anxiety arising from appraisal concerns. At moderate levels, this type of writing anxiety and worrying predicted desirable final exam performance. In conclusion, appraisal concerns specific to writing or academic performance can propel effort in courses where the acquisition of topical knowledge is demonstrated through writing. Yet, the degree to which these epiphenomena are experienced may determine whether they operate as promoters or impediments. Thus, interventions intended to regulate students’ emotive reactions can optimize learning in such courses.

Keywords:

Second-Language Writing Anxiety; Second Language; Worrying; Freshmen

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Pilotti, M., BoJulaia, M., & El Alaoui, K. (2025). Young Women from an Understudied Student Population: Worries, Writing Anxiety, and Performance in a General Education Course. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 7(12), 1747–1759. https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i12.12475

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Vol. 7 , Iss. 12 (December 2025): In progress

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Copyright © 2025 Maura Pilotti, Maryam BoJulaia, Khadija El Alaoui

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