Relationship of Apprehension about Writing to Performance as Measured by Grades in a College Course on Composition

Abstract

A questionnaire on the measurement of apprehension about writing was given to 1,257 students enrolled in their first college course in composition. Scores on the questionnaire did not correlate well with a measure of performance, grades in the composition course. A general measure of verbal facility and skills, Composite American College Test scores, correlated well with grades. These findings raise questions about what is measured by the questionnaire and suggest that achievement in writing depends more heavily on verbal skills than on apprehension about writing.