Factors Contributing to Oral Communication Apprehension among Sudanese Undergraduate Students Majoring in English: Students’ Perspectives

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the level of oral communication apprehension (OCA) among Sudanese undergraduate students majoring in English. It, also, aimed to investigate the reasons behind their CA. The sample of the study consisted of 150 English major students, chosen randomly form three faculties at Gezira University: Faculty of Arts at ALKamleen, Faculty of Education at ALHasaheesah and Faculty of Education at Hantoub. The methodological approach underlined this study is a quantitative, descriptive and statistical approach. Two questionnaires were used to collect data; questionnaire (1) is the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PRCA-24), which was used to measure the level of students’ communication apprehension and questionnaire (2) was used to investigate factors that contribute to OCA. The data were analyzed by using different statistical methods such as percentages, mean, standard -deviation, and the statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). The findings revealed that the level of oral communication apprehension of undergraduate students was mostly average and that public speaking was the most anxiety-provoking as compared to the other contexts of oral communication. The findings also revealed a number of sources of CA such as: lack of self-confidence, lack of special speaking skills, lack of adequate preparation, fear of making mistakes, teacher’s behavior, linguistic factors and use of L1. The study concluded with some recommendations to EFL learners, EFL teachers, and educational policy makers. Finally, further researches were suggested in relation to the investigation of oral communication apprehension in lower educational levels and in other universities across the country.