Fear of Assimilation and Willingness to Communicate: Identity Barriers in Emergent Portuguese–Spanish Bilingualism in Portugal

Abstract

Aims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions:

In culturally and linguistically adjacent contexts, learning and using an additional language may entail not only foreign-language development but also early processes of bilingualisation. This study investigates fear of assimilation as an affective barrier to L2 Willingness to Communicate (WTC) in Spanish among Portuguese university students. It addresses three key research questions: (1) To what extent does fear of assimilation influence L2WTC? (2) Does fear of assimilation mediate the relationship between attitudes towards Spanish-speaking communities and L2WTC? (3) Are there gender-based differences in attitudes and fear of assimilation?

Design/Methodology/Approach:

Adopting a cross-sectional, quantitative design, the study tested a moderated mediation model to explore direct, indirect, and interaction effects among the variables. Instruments measuring intergroup attitudes, fear of assimilation, and L2WTC were administered.

Data and Analysis:

The sample comprised 192 Portuguese university students enrolled in Spanish language courses. Data were analysed using regression-based mediation and moderation analyses with bootstrapping (jAMM module, Jamovi), following exclusion of outliers through Mahalanobis distance testing.

Findings/Conclusions:

Fear of assimilation emerged as a significant negative predictor of L2WTC, confirming its role as an affective obstacle. However, it did not function as a mediating variable between attitudes and L2WTC. While gender differences were observed in the levels of attitudes and fear, no significant moderation effects were detected in the structural model.

Originality:

This study provides the first empirical test of fear of assimilation as an independent psychological factor influencing WTC in a context of linguistic proximity, advancing current models of affect in emerging bilingualism processes.

Significance/Implications:

Findings underscore the importance of integrating identity-sensitive pedagogical strategies in L2 education. The study offers theoretical contributions to second language acquisition (SLA) models by delineating how perceived identity threat operates alongside (rather than through) cultural attitudes in shaping communicative engagement and emergent bilingual practices.