Factors influencing English public speaking anxiety among Thai teachers in primary international programs in Bangkok

This study aims to explore the level of English public speaking anxiety experienced by Thai teachers working in primary international programs in Bangkok across four stages: pre-preparation, preparation, pre-performance, and performance. It also explores the factors influencing English public speaking anxiety. The participants consisted of 45 Thai teachers currently employed in primary international programs in Bangkok, selected through convenience sampling. A quantitative research design was employed to describe anxiety levels and contributing factors. The research instrument was a three-part questionnaire based on a previous study which adapted from Plangkham and Porkaew (2012). The section which elicits public speaking anxiety was based on McCroskey's (1970) Personal Report of Public Speaking Anxiety (PRPSA). The data were analyzed for descriptive statistics, namely means and standard deviations. Overall, the results show that participants experienced moderate anxiety during the pre-preparation (M = 3.01) and pre-performance (M = 3.00) stages, while lower anxiety levels were reported during the preparation (M = 2.40) and performance (M = 2.48) stages. The analysis on factors contributing to the anxiety identified four core categories: psychological factors, language proficiency, preparation and skills, and social-contextual influences. Among these, social and contextual factors emerged as the most influential (M = 3.22), followed by language-related concerns (M = 3.01), psychological factors (M = 2.79), and preparation and skills (M = 2.76). This study contributes to theoretical understanding by mapping anxiety-inducing factors onto the distinct temporal phases of the speaking process.