Graduation Year

2025

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Linguistics and Cognitive Science

Abstract

Language anxiety refers to the stress that accompanies the use of a second language for some bilingual individuals. Researchers have identified three types of language anxiety: foreign language anxiety, heritage language anxiety, and majority language anxiety. In addition, it is widely known that the autonomous nervous system—which is responsible for involuntary physiological processes—produces responses to anxiety. The present study explores the relationship between heritage language anxiety and heart rate. Sixteen English-Hindi/Urdu heritage bilingual students from the Claremont Colleges were recruited to participate in a speaking task while their heart rate was measured in beats per minute (bpm). The results of this study demonstrate that heritage bilinguals display significantly higher heart rates while speaking in Hindi/Urdu than in English, which suggests the presence of heritage language anxiety in these individuals. These results support the usage of heart rate measurement in future studies as a physiological correlate of heritage language anxiety.

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This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.

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