Exploring the Impact of Individual and Collaborative Digital Multimodal Composing on EFL Learners’ Foreign Language Anxiety

Digital multimodal composing (DMC) integrates multiple semiotic modes such as text, audio, and visual elements using digital tools as a novel meaning-making practice. Employing a sequential explanatory design, this mixed-methods study investigated the impact of individual and collaborative DMC on learners' foreign language anxiety (FLA) as a possible factor influencing the success of foreign language learning. Given that high anxiety levels act as a debilitative barrier to second language acquisition, identifying contemporary pedagogical strategies to mitigate this affective filter is crucial. The study participants were 96 English language learners at a language school, divided into two experimental groups and a control group. In the experimental groups, students were introduced to individual and collaborative DMC, while in the control group, they were exposed to traditional monomodal writing. The data collection instruments comprised the DIALANG placement test, foreign language classroom anxiety scale, and semi-structured interviews. The quantitative data were analysed using the Kruskal-Wallis test, whereas the qualitative data underwent thematic analysis. The findings indicated that both individual and collaborative DMC practices significantly decreased students' FLA. In addition, collaborative DMC was more effective than individual DMC in reducing FLA. The qualitative analysis of the interviews revealed five explanatory points supporting the observed decline in FLA, providing insight into the quantitative findings. In addition, opinions regarding the efficacy of DMC in reducing FLA were divided. The pedagogical implications are discussed in the light of the literature. The findings of this study call for the integration of DMC, as a novel literacy practice, into L2 writing courses to relieve EFL learners’ FLA. They also suggest that L2 instructors prioritise collaborative DMC over individual DMC, as it is more effective at reducing FLA. Ultimately, this study advocates an updated, technologically integrated curriculum that supports both linguistic competence and emotional well-being among language learners.