Foreign language anxiety (FLA) has been a perennial concern in language learning, as foreign language (FL) learners often communicate feelings of anxiety, stress, or nervousness. This study explored the role of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in speaking practice for FLA management of 48 undergraduate participants in an EFL class in Egypt. An eight‐week, quasi‐experimental pretest–posttest design examined learner anxiety levels using a 33‐item FLA questionnaire. Their oral proficiency was assessed via roleplaying using an interaction‐enhanced public version of the IELTS speaking evaluation rubric. The results confirmed that FL learners experienced FLA pre‐ and post‐intervention. The identified anxiety levels played a facilitative role in FL learning with several ensuing gains. The use of conversationally enhanced AI chatbots in interactive activities slightly intensified learners' FLA, thus meriting further investigation of these objectives. Overall, subject to further development, AI chatbots are promising for significantly improving linguistic output gains; however, this study found that learners' speech‐related anxieties were not reduced following the interactions with the chatbots. It is concluded that FLA plays an underexplored facilitative role in sharpening learner cognitive faculties and linguistic capacities. Moreover, AI chatbots may be beneficial in advancing FL learning with significant potential in EFL contexts, facilitating improved interaction and oral communication. These findings support the integration of AI technologies as effective tools in FL education, providing flexible, interactive, and learner‐centred learning. This study is expected to be of considerable interest to FL educators and learners.

中文翻译：

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人工智能对英语口语焦虑和口语成绩的影响：一个案例研究

外语焦虑（FLA）一直是语言学习中的一个长期关注的问题，因为外语（FL）学习者经常交流焦虑，压力或紧张的感觉。这项研究探索了人工智能（AI）在口语练习中对埃及EFL班级48名本科生的FLA管理的作用。一项为期八周的准实验前测-后测设计使用33项FLA问卷调查了学习者的焦虑水平。通过使用雅思口语评估规则的互动增强型公共版本，通过角色扮演来评估他们的口语水平。结果证实，外语学习者在干预前后都经历了外语学习。所确定的焦虑水平在FL学习中起到了促进作用，并因此获得了一些好处。在互动活动中使用对话增强型AI聊天机器人会稍微增强学习者的FLA，因此有必要进一步研究这些目标。总体而言，随着进一步的发展，人工智能聊天机器人有望显着提高语言输出收益。但是，这项研究发现，与聊天机器人进行交互后，与学习者语音相关的焦虑并没有减少。结论是，FLA在增强学习者的认知能力和语言能力方面发挥了尚未充分开发的促进作用。此外，AI聊天机器人可能有益于在EFL上下文中促进潜力巨大的FL学习，从而促进互动和口头交流。这些发现支持将AI技术整合为FL教育中的有效工具，可提供灵活，互动，和以学习者为中心的学习。这项研究有望引起外语教育者和学习者的极大兴趣。