Writing anxiety is a persistent affective barrier that undermines the writing performance and academic achievement of English as a Second Language (ESL) learners. While numerous studies have examined this phenomenon in the Philippine context, findings remain dispersed across educational levels and research settings. This scoping review sought to consolidate the existing literature on writing anxiety among Filipino ESL learners published between 2013 and 2025 by identifying the educational levels most frequently studied, the dominant dimensions of writing anxiety, methodological patterns, contributing and mitigating factors, and research gaps. Guided by the Arksey and O’Malley (2005) framework and reported in line with PRISMA-ScR guidelines, the review systematically searched Google Scholar, ERIC, ResearchGate, Philippine E-Journals, and other open-access databases. Of the 67 records identified, 10 empirical studies met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. Results showed that research has concentrated on senior high school students (50%), followed by tertiary (30%) and junior high school learners (20%). Cognitive anxiety—marked by fear of failure, negative evaluation, and concern over writing performance—emerged as the most prevalent dimension, while somatic anxiety and avoidance behaviors appeared less frequently. Most studies employed quantitative descriptive-correlational designs and utilized Cheng’s Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory (SLWAI) as the primary instrument. The review further highlighted linguistic challenges, fear of evaluation, classroom pressure, and socioeconomic status as major contributors to writing anxiety, whereas explicit writing instruction, supportive teacher communication, writing self-efficacy, and collaborative learning strategies were found to reduce anxiety. Despite the expanding body of literature, notable gaps persist, particularly the limited focus on junior high school learners, the scarcity of longitudinal and intervention-based studies, and the reliance on cross-sectional quantitative methods. These findings provide a comprehensive synthesis of current evidence and offer valuable implications for ESL pedagogy, curriculum development, language policy, and future research aimed at fostering supportive learning environments that alleviate writing anxiety and strengthen learners’ writing competence.
Writing anxiety has become a common challenge among learners in higher education, particularly in academic writing tasks that require critical thinking, language accuracy, and effective communication. The use of appropriate writing strategies is believed to help learners manage writing difficulties and reduce anxiety during the writing process. Therefore, this study investigates the influence of writing strategies on different types of writing anxiety among tertiary learners. Specifically, the study examines the relationship between writing strategies and writing anxiety across gender, course of study, and SPM CEFR level, as well as learners’ perceptions of writing strategies, cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, and avoidance behaviour. This quantitative study employed a survey design involving 331 participants from various courses of study at a higher learning institution. The instrument consisted of a 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire adapted from Cheng (2004) and Raoofi et al. (2017), comprising 44 items divided into sections on writing anxiety and writing strategies. Data were analysed using SPSS through descriptive, inferential, and correlational analyses. The findings revealed significant differences in writing strategies across gender and significant differences in writing anxiety across the course of study. However, no significant differences were found across SPM CEFR levels. Correlation analysis further indicated a weak but significant negative relationship between writing strategies and both cognitive and somatic anxiety, suggesting that the increased use of writing strategies may help reduce learners’ anxiety in writing. The study also showed that learners generally demonstrated positive perceptions towards the use of metacognitive, cognitive, social, affective, and effort regulation strategies in writing. The findings imply that writing instructors should integrate effective writing strategies into classroom practices to help learners manage writing anxiety and improve their writing performance. Future studies may further explore other factors influencing writing anxiety using different contexts and research approaches.
The Systematic Literature Review (SLR) investigates English Language Learning Strategies (LLS) employed by ESL students within the Malaysian educational context, particularly focusing the period of 2018 to 2024 after the implementation of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). Guided by PRISMA protocols, seven empirical studies were selected from Scopus and Web of Sciences databases based on meticulous inclusion and exclusion criteria. It was found that metacognitive strategies such as planning, monitoring and evaluating were the most widely used and effective across various education levels, followed by cognitive and socio-affective strategies. It had also revealed that university students were the most frequently studied population, leaving a research gap in primary, secondary and vocational education settings. The review underscored the need for more diversified research to inform pedagogical innovation and enhance teacher training programs to fit the students’ strategic learning needs. The review contributed to a clearer understanding of how LLS facilitate English proficiency among Malaysian ESL learners.
