ABSTRACT
This study explored the psychological and linguistic barriers affecting the listening comprehension of 10 purposively selected BSED English students of Abuyog Community College. Anchored in Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis (1982), this study used a descriptive phenomenological research design, data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings revealed two major themes: psychological obstacles to effective listening (nervousness and boredom, pressure, and lack of clarity) and listening comprehension difficulties (vocabulary gap, delivery speed, and mother tongue interference).
Results showed that psychological factors raised students’ affective filter and hindered focus, while linguistic barriers such as limited vocabulary, fast speech, and mother tongue interference further disrupted comprehension. The study concludes that psychological and linguistic factors significantly affect students’ ability to process spoken English and influence their engagement in listening tasks. This research contributes to the field by offering context-specific insights that may guide educators in designing supportive, low-anxiety classroom environments, pre-listening vocabulary activities, and varied listening practices to enhance students’ comprehension and confidence.
Keywords: Listening Comprehension, Psychological Barriers, Linguistic Challenges, Affective Filter, Language Acquisition
INTRODUCTION
Listening is a fundamental skill in language acquisition, particularly in English as a Second Language (ESL) learning environments. Unlike speaking or writing, listening is a receptive skill that demands both linguistic knowledge and cognitive focus (Rost, 2011). Despite its importance, many ESL learners struggle to develop effective listening comprehension. This struggle is not solely rooted in language proficiency; psychological factors also play a significant role in shaping a learner’s listening experience (Goh, 2000). In classroom settings, particularly in higher education, effective listening is closely linked to student performance, participation, and confidence.
Despite its significance, listening remains one of the most challenging skills to master among ESL learners. Research has shown that two major types of barriers contribute to these challenges: psychological and linguistic. Psychological barriers include factors such as language fear of misunderstanding, low self-esteem, and a lack of motivation (Horwitz, & Cope, 1986). These emotional factors often inhibit learners from fully engaging with listening tasks. On the other hand, linguistic barriers encompass issues such as limited vocabulary, unfamiliar accents, lack of exposure to natural speech, and rapid delivery of spoken content (Field, 2008; Vandergrift, 2007). These barriers are often compounded when students are exposed to academic listening contexts where complex ideas are conveyed at a fast pace.
While previous studies on ESL listening barriers mostly rely on surveys or tests and tend to examine psychological or linguistic factors separately, few use qualitative methods to explore how these challenges intersect in specific classroom settings. Additionally, there is limited research on Education students in provincial colleges like Abuyog Community College, where learning contexts differ from urban institutions. This study aims to fill that gap by offering a qualitative, context-specific exploration of learners’ personal experiences with psychological and linguistic listening barriers.
Additionally, in the Philippine context, where English serves as both a medium of instruction and a second language, these challenges are particularly evident. However, many students struggle to understand spoken English, particularly when it involves non-Filipino accents, academic vocabulary, or unfamiliar topics. These difficulties not only hinder their language development but may also affect their confidence and academic success, especially in English-focused courses such as Oral Communication, Language and Culture, and Language Assessment (Bernardo, 2004)
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
This study aimed to find answer on the psychological and linguistic barriers faced by English learners of Abuyog Community College.
Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:
What psychological factors do students identify as obstacles to effective listening?
What specific linguistic challenges do students encounter during listening tasks?
How do these psychological and linguistic barriers affect students’ aural comprehension and engagement in class?
How participants able to overcome these barriers?
Based on the result, what intervention program can be proposed?
METHODOLOGY
Research Design This study employed a descriptive phenomenological research design to explore the psychological and linguistic barriers that affect effective listening. A phenomenological approach is appropriate for this research as it focuses on capturing and describing the students’ lived experiences and perceptions of listening difficulties, allowing the researcher to uncover the essence of how these barriers are experienced in their academic lives, as grounded in Edmund Husserl’s phenomenological theory (Husserl, 1931).
Research Instrument This study used qualitative data collection through a semi-structured interview guide, enabling the researchers to ask open-ended questions and probe deeper based on participants’ responses to capture in-depth, descriptive data. The interview questions are designed to elicit students’ personal experiences, thoughts, and feelings related to English listening tasks, focusing on themes such as linguistic and psychological challenges, exposure to spoken English and coping strategies. This instrument provides collective insights and highlights common barriers that students face within the same learning environment.
Validation of the Research Instrument The research instruments undergone expert review for content validation to ensure clarity, fairness, completeness, and relevance in eliciting meaningful responses about psychological and linguistic barriers, with constructive feedback used to refine question wording, order, and scope.
Locale of the Study This study was conducted at Abuyog Community College, located in Abuyog, Leyte, Philippines. The institution offers various programs, including the Bachelor of Secondary Education major in English (BSED English), which served as the focus of this research. The college provided a conducive environment for exploring students’ lived experiences in developing their English language skills, particularly listening comprehension, as it offers courses that emphasize language proficiency, literature, and communication.
Participant Selection and Sampling This study involved 10 BSED English students from Abuyog Community College, selected using purposive sampling. Their exposure to formal listening instruction and advanced classroom discourse provides valuable insights into the psychological and linguistic challenges affecting listening comprehension.
Data Analysis The data collected from semi-structured interviews and classroom observations were analyzed using a qualitative thematic analysis approach. This method allows for the identification, examination, and interpretation of patterns and themes within the rich textual data to understand the psychological and linguistic barriers.
Data Gathering Procedure The data collection process follows a systematic and ethical descriptive phenomenological approach, starting with obtaining informed consent and scheduling interviews at convenient times in private, comfortable settings. Semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions were conducted to capture participants’ lived experiences of psychological and linguistic barriers to listening comprehension, allowing room for probing and follow-up questions. To ensure accuracy, all interviews were audio-recorded with participants’ permission, complemented by detailed field notes documenting responses and observations, while triangulation through individual interviews and observations strengthened the credibility and reliability of the findings by cross-validating themes and minimizing researcher bias. Afterward, data were organized, analyzed, and coded to identify emerging themes and patterns that reflect the essence of students’ listening challenges.
Ethical Considerations This study upheld ethical standards by securing institutional review board approval, obtaining informed consent through signed forms, ensuring participants’ right to withdraw at any time, maintaining strict confidentiality by anonymizing data, using all information solely for research purposes, and conducting the study with empathy and respect given the sensitive nature of discussing listening comprehension.
Research Reflexivity To maintain transparency and enhance the trustworthiness of the findings, a reflexive journal was kept throughout the study, documenting the researcher’s assumptions, decisions, and reflections during participant selection and data collection. Additionally, the researchers being students of the same course and college experiencing the same phenomena as the participants did.
1. Psychological Obstacles to Effective Listening
This study found that students experiencing negative emotions tend to miss details, get distracted, or disengage during listening tasks. Psychological obstacles significantly affect listening comprehension, particularly emotion.
Participant 1 shared, “Naka experience naak hin na kahadlok. Labi na kung koan. I mean, kung ano nim ig yayakan, ngan ig yayakan sit teacher in front or instructor infront. Dire mo na naiintindihan. And then, napapressure ka paano siya intindihon? Labi na kung may task, may da another task na ipapabuhat it teacher or it instructor nga bagan connected sa listening.
( “I’ve experienced being scared. Especially if it is ummm… I mean, what to say, and what the teacher says in front or instructor in front. And then, you are pressured how to understand her/him? Especially if there is a task that the teacher or the instructor will ask you to do that seems to be connected to listening.)
This finding was supported by Krashen (1982) explaining that a high affective filter caused by stress, anxiety, or pressure can block language input from being fully processed, highlighting how psychological obstacles like nervousness and pressure can significantly affect listening comprehension.
1.1 Nervousness and Boredom Reduced Listening Comprehension:
The study highlights that nervousness and boredom significantly reduce listening comprehension. According to Krashen's (1982) Affective Filter Hypothesis, nervousness raises students' affective filter, blocking language input and lowering comprehension. Boredom also negatively impacts listening by making it more difficult to understand the material (Pekrun et al., 2010).
Participant 2 shared, "In the first place, sometimes nervous. Because I yeah, I felt, you know, nervous somehow." cannot even learn the word. Specifically, when a teacher is speaking about something and if I do not really listen and grasp certain information in that topic then I get bored.
Participant 4 stated, “I get bored sometimes especially when the instructor uses deep words. I also have a habit that if I get bored at the start, I usually do not listen. So, I’ll just ask my seatmate or ask for a copy of the notes.”
1.2 Pressure Increase Listening Anxiety: Most students shared that pressure increases their listening anxiety, especially during graded activities or when they are called to answer immediately after listening. They explained that this pressure causes them to overthink, lose focus, and sometimes miss key information being said.
Participant 5 expressed that, “I was pressured especially during reporting or demonstration way back then. So before, it was impromptu report, so it was really difficult for me because I had a lot of adjustment because first of all, I don’t know that, I mean, I’m not prepared enough to tackle that topic.”
MacIntyre and Gardner (1994), emphasized that anxiety in second-language learning especially situational pressure can disrupt cognitive processes such as attention, working memory, and information processing, ultimately impairing comprehension and performance.
1.3 Lacks Clarity. Lack of clarity was identified as a challenge that significantly affects students’ listening comprehension. They explained that when they do not understand certain words or phrases, they ask the speaker to repeat or explain, consult classmates, or search online which helps them regain focus and grasp the meaning of the message.
Participant 8 stated “When I don’t understand, I first try to guess from the context or body language. If that fails, mag ask ak hit friend or ako spit kun ano adto. Sometimes, if I feel comfortable, I will directly ask the speaker to repeat or explain it.
“When I do not understand, I first try to guess the context or body language. If that fails, I ask a friend what it means. Sometimes, if I feel comfortable, I’ll directly ask the speaker to repeat or explain it.”
This aligns with the findings of Long’s Interaction Hypothesis (1996), which suggests that clarification requests and comprehension checks facilitate better understanding and promote more effective language learning.
2. Listening Comprehension Difficulties: Students often struggle with listening comprehension because it requires them to process multiple elements of language simultaneously.
In the case of Participant 5 she said, “For me English, I mean listening and learning English is very difficult, but I believe that if it is your passion, so any difficulties or challenges that you may occur, you will be able to conquer that one. But of course, vocabulary is the first thing that I need to improve because I’m not really have a background about English language, but I’m still doing my best to learn that one.
“For me, I mean listening and learning English is very difficult, but I believe that if it is your passion, any difficulties, or challenges that you may encounter, you will be able to conquer them. But of course, vocabulary is the first thing that I need to improve because I don’t really have a background in the English language, but I’m still doing my best to learn it.”
According to Gilakjani and Ahmadi (2011), listening difficulties often stem from both linguistic and non-linguistic factors, including unfamiliar vocabulary, fast speech rates, varied accents, and limited background knowledge. Vandergrift (1999) also explains that effective listening requires simultaneous processing of sounds, words, grammar, and meaning, which can easily overwhelm learners.
2.1 Vocabulary Gap: Some participants expressef that unfamiliar words significantly hinder their ability to follow spoken English.
Participant 3 shared, “Makuri kon lack im vocabulary. Why? Kasi, some words are very hard to comprehend and sometimes very hard to say and sometimes very hard to memorize and very hard in kung paano ba siya magamit sa context. Like, mga rendezvous, mga bourgeoisie, di ba?
(“It’s hard if you lack vocabulary. Why? Because some words are very hard to comprehend and sometimes very hard to say and sometimes very hard to memorize and very hard in how to use them in context. Like, rendezvous, bourgeoisie, right)
This finding supports Goh (2000), who identified limited vocabulary as one of the primary sources of listening breakdowns in second language learning.
2.2 Delivery Speed: Students consistently mentioned that fast speech rates make listening tasks more challenging. They often feel overwhelmed when they cannot keep up with the pace, leading to missed details and reduced comprehension.
This is evident to the case of Participant 6,” Lisod para sa ak pag listen sa speed of speech. Syempre kon, di ka…. Like iton bagan pagpaspasay ba na pag ano, pagluwas kay, bagan d ka naka sabay ngan dre ka maka intindi.”
“It’s hard for me to listen to if someone is talking fast. Of course, if, you don’t…. like talking in a fast pace, you can’t keep up and you don’t understand.”
Field (2008) notes that rapid delivery places a heavy burden on working memory, leaving learners less time to process meaning.
2.3 Mother Tongue Interference: Participants shared that their first language often interferes with their ability to process English in real time. They reported unconsciously translating English words into their mother tongue, which slows down comprehension and sometimes causes misunderstanding.
Participant 10 expressed that “There are uhmm…there are somewhat similar, there are words that are somewhat similar in pronunciation with my mother tongue and the English words. Nga for example, dili di ay nako nabatian pag ayo tapos na misheard nako ang certain words.
“There are, um, somewhat similar words in pronunciation between my mother tongue and English words. For example, I didn’t hear it very well, and then I misheard certain words.
This was supported by Cook (2001), who explains that first-language influence can lead to negative transfer, making it harder for learners to quickly and accurately interpret spoken English.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
This study concludes that psychological factors such as nervousness and boredom, pressure, and lack of clarity along with linguistic barriers like limited vocabulary, fast speech, and mother tongue interference, significantly hinder students’ listening comprehension by causing loss of focus, anxiety, and misunderstanding. Despite these challenges, students use strategies like seeking clarification, consulting peers, and searching online, with confidence and motivation helping sustain engagement. It is recommended that teachers create a supportive, low-anxiety classroom environment through clear instructions, pre-listening vocabulary, and interactive activities to boost participation. Exposure to varied speech rates and accents and encouraging students to develop independent strategies are also suggested to strengthen listening skills and overall language learning.
Additionally, institutions are encouraged to provide listening resources, language laboratories, and training sessions that promote confidence, motivation, and continued improvement in listening skills.
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DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17317174
