Breaking the vicious cycle of language anxiety: Growth language mindsets improve lower-competence ESL students’ intercultural interactions

Abstract

For migrant students enrolled in a postsecondary institution where the language of instruction is not their native language, experiencing anxiety using a new language can manifest in their daily social interactions, and lead them to avoid using the target language, thereby undercutting their academic and social adaptation. We propose that this vicious cycle of language anxiety and intercultural experiences is influenced by language mindsets (i.e., beliefs about the extent to which language learning ability is fixed versus malleable). We conducted three studies (N = 581), including a social interaction task, a double-blind randomized experiment, and a preregistered cross-sectional survey, to test the role of language mindsets on English-as-a-second-language (ESL) students’ rejection sensitivity, perceived rejection, self- and experimenter-reported contact avoidance, willingness to interact with peers, and the amount of time in using English. We found that fixed (vs. growth) language mindsets were linked to negative perceptions of language-based rejection and self- and experimenter-reported contact avoidance. Importantly, growth language mindsets mitigated perceived language-based rejection and encouraged future communication among those with low (but not with high) perceived English competence. The findings highlight that growth mindsets contribute to the resilience of language minority students during their university experience, especially for those with low English competence.