Wan Safuraa Wan Osman

Writing anxiety has been a topic in the SLA field for several decades; since the connection between writing anxiety and writing performance appear to be stronger in an ESL context. In this view, the purpose of the research is to explore how second language writing anxiety could influence postgraduate dissertation writing. In this qualitative case study, three Malaysian postgraduate students were interviewed and were asked to complete Cheng's (2004) Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory. Applying the thematic analysis method, the findings were generated based on the participants' responses to 91 in-depth interview questions and 22 statements in the inventory that supplies information regarding their cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, and behavioural avoidance tendencies. The findings revealed that second language writing anxiety could disrupt overall writing progress and influence writing approach, writing process and written output. In addition, the findings also showed that the results of the participants' trait second language writing anxiety may not necessarily predict their state writing anxiety experience, which could include a form of social anxiety, and time anxiety experience. Therefore, the significance of the study lies in its attempt to promote greater understanding of the affective phenomenon and to inform efforts to improve postgraduate student-writer's motivation and dissertation writing performance. The study highlights theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications by offering insights on the complexity of second language writing anxiety in postgraduate dissertation writing.

Since it is a social affair as it is cognitive, collaboration with supervisor is a central aspect of postgraduate dissertation writing. In this view, the research intends to offer insights on the underlying social transaction between supervisee and supervisor and how this may influence supervisee's second language writing anxiety when writing. In this qualitative study, three Malaysian postgraduate students were asked to complete Cheng's (2004) Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory (henceforth, as SLWAI) before they were interviewed. The findings were generated using thematic analysis on the data of 91 interview questions and 22 items in the SLWAI, in which the self-assessment provides information on their tendencies for cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, and avoidance behaviours. The findings showed that the participants exhibited low-self-esteem, emotional distress, underdeveloped research ownership, negative self-perceptions, and negative perceptions towards dissertation writing, when exposed to anxiety-salient conditions such as receiving negative comments, perceiving external locus of control, and lacking rapport with supervisor. Under those circumstances, the participants appear to perceive their supervisors as examiners and as potential threat to their writing goal. In effect, the supervisors' manipulation of anxiety to provoke performance and the perceived social distance tend to exacerbate their writing anxiety. Therefore, the study significance lies in its efforts to improve supervision, student's motivation and performance in dissertation writing by promoting greater understanding of writing anxiety and superviseesupervisor relationship. Thus, highlighting the interrelationship between the affective phenomenon and the social aspect of dissertation writing, the study also discusses theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications.