Reducing Public Speaking Anxiety Via Combining Psychotherapies With Speech Instruction

Abstract

This study explores the effectiveness of reducing college students’ public speaking anxiety by combining advanced psychotherapies with skill-training-based speech instruction. Three prevalent psychotherapies are applied into public speaking class: acceptance and commitment therapy, exposure therapy and abdominal breathing and muscle relaxation method. Students’ anxiety level is recorded and compared before and after psychotherapy interference. The results prove that students’ speaking anxiety is reduced dramatically after this combined instruction which is then considered an effective way of reducing college students’ English public speaking anxiety.