Glossophobia: The Fear of Public Speaking in ESL Students in Ghana

Abstract

Glossophobia, an individual’s anxiety of public speaking, has been observed to be a common phenomenon among students. The present study explores factors associated with glossophobia among ESL students of a tertiary institution in Upper-West Ghana, the Dr. Hilla Limann Technical University, Wa and makes recommendations for improvement in their public speaking skills. The study combined both quantitative and qualitative research approaches in an opinion poll involving 46 participants from the Level 300 class of the Secretaryship and Management Studies of the Business School. Participants acknowledged the importance of public speaking, but conceded that at some point in their student lives, when they had to speak in public, glossophobia prevented them from making a good impression on the audience. Speaking English before a crowd was identified as the most dreaded experience. Low self-confidence in speaking in public; lack of constant speaking experience and lack of knowledge in public speaking; fear of making mistakes and being laughed at; inadequate preparation and timidity were also identified as challenges affecting participants’ ability to speak English in public. To help students overcome that phobia, the study recommends that lecturers should adopt an interactive approach combined with the appropriate communication strategies to promote positive attitudes and create the desirable atmosphere for boosting students’ confidence. Lecturers should also organise seminars on public speaking skills and encourage regular individual oral presentation in class so students can practise to develop positive attitudes towards public speaking.

Exploration of Public-Speaking Anxiety among Novice Instructors at a Ghanaian University

“…As has been confirmed by prior research (e.g., Dansieh et al, 2021;Kenoh III, 2021), participants also identified constant practice as one of the measures for overcoming public-speaking anxiety. Analysis of interview transcripts and direct observations showed that the majority of study participants engaged in frequent practice before speaking to student audiences.…”

“…This is because as soon as a person's mind becomes victim to anxiety's grip and is uncontrolled, the subject's ability to freely articulate their thoughts is affected. Individuals with public-speaking anxiety usually experience a number of symptoms, including palpitations, sweating, discomfort, diarrhoea, and confusion (Bodie, 2010;Dansieh et al, 2021;Hook et al, 2013). Anxiety may not always be negative; in some contexts, anxiety helps the individual to be fully prepared for the task ahead of them (Gregersen & Horwitz, 2002).…”

“…Kankam and Boateng (2017) note that it can prevent persons from succeeding professionally or academically. Yet, although public-speaking anxiety can affect every speaker in one context or another (Hofmann, 2007), most of the studies conducted on the subject have concentrated on students as participants and respondents (Dansieh et al, 2021;Dobržinskienė, 2017;Hook et al, 2013;Linardopoulos, 2010;Raja, 2017). Given this focus, speech communication scholars have paid insufficient attention to how public-speaking anxiety impacts on the communication of instructors in the instructional process.…”

“…To meet this objective, the study focused on identifying the causes of public-speaking anxiety among this cohort, and exploring the measures they employed to overcome this communication difficulty. Unlike recent studies that have investigated public-speaking anxiety among African tertiary students (e.g., Raja, 2017;Dansieh et al, 2021;Prentiss, 2021), the study focused on instructors, and addressed the following research questions:…”

Student Perceptions of the Fairness of Video Presentation Grading in the Online EFL Classroom

“…In extreme cases, the researcher noted that students did not come to class when the live presentations were being performed or dropped the class. The fear of public speaking, or speaking anxiety, referred to as glossophobia, is one of the most common phobias (Dansieh, Owusu, & Seidu, 2021). The researcher noticed that nervousness in the video presentations during the pandemic semester seemed lessened than in previous semesters when students presented in front of the classroom.…”