This study identified the level of foreign language anxiety and foreign language reading anxiety among Indian ESL learners and their correlation with foreign language reading performance. It also explored whether gender differences of learners had any impact on the level of anxiety and reading achievement in Indian ESL learners. The present study employed a survey research design among twenty first year integrated Economics students of Pondicherry University. The primary data source came from the two anxiety instruments, namely FLCAS (Horwitz et al, 1986) and FLRAS (Saito et al, 1999), a background questionnaire and a reading comprehension test score. The results indicate a significant negative correlation between foreign language reading anxiety and foreign language reading performance among the participants; whereas there was no significant effect of gender on the foreign language reading anxiety and foreign language classroom anxiety of the participants.This study identified the level of foreign language anxiety and foreign language reading anxiety among Indian ESL learners and their correlation with foreign language reading performance. It also explored whether gender differences of learners had any impact on the level of anxiety and reading achievement in Indian ESL learners. The present study employed a survey research design among twenty first year integrated Economics students of Pondicherry University. The primary data source came from the two anxiety instruments, namely FLCAS (Horwitz et al, 1986) and FLRAS (Saito et al, 1999), a background questionnaire and a reading comprehension test score. The results indicate a significant negative correlation between foreign language reading anxiety and foreign language reading performance among the participants; whereas there was no significant effect of gender on the foreign language reading anxiety and foreign language classroom anxiety of the participants.
Key words: anxiety, foreign language anxiety, English language reading anxiety, FLCAS, FLRAS
