Listening strategy use, test anxiety and test performance of intermediate and advanced Iranian EFL learners

Learning a foreign language has been related with some kind of knowledge of language learning strategies on the one hand, and some level of (test-taking) apprehension or tension on the other although a small amount of anxiety is normally expected as a natural warning symptom. The current study aimed at investigating the relationship between listening strategy use, test anxiety, and listening test performance of Iranian intermediate and advanced EFL learners. To this end, eighty (40 intermediate and 40 advanced) Iranian EFL learners took part in the study by completing Lee’s (1997) Listening Comprehension Strategy Questionnaire, Sarason’s (1975) Test Anxiety Scale (TAS), and two monologues of Listening test performance selected from Listening part of TOEFL. The results of Pearson product moment correlation analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between test anxiety and listening test performance, but a significant positive association between listening strategy use and listening test performance. Furthermore, the results of multiple regression analyses indicated listening strategy use was a stronger predictor of listening test performance. Additionally, the results of independent samples t-test showed a significant difference between Iranian intermediate and advanced EFL learners regarding both their listening strategy use and level of test anxiety.