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Jenna Walther

Dr. Elliot

REVISION OF THEORY PAPER

October 24, 2013

Towards a Theory of Writing Apprehension: An Exposition of Neurotic Writers

It is possible for a person to be apprehensive when composing a theory paper

using research about neuroticism, writing apprehension, and writers block: continuously

editing, constantly deleting, or staring at a blank document past the deadline; worrying

about sounding sophisticated and evaluation of intelligence. “The odd thing is that though

writer’s block is a familiar, even popular notion, it is one of the least studied dysfunctions

of the composing process” (Rose 1). Limited theory exists for writing apprehension;

additionally, studies and research about writing anxiety, is a narrow scope with a limited

amount of information. “A small body of literature exists for a phenomenon related to

writer’s block: writing apprehension or anxiety” (Rose 3). Neuroticism, a broad domain

of the Big Five personality traits, can help explain the anxiety and fear someone may

have during the writing process; fear of being evaluated or judged, anxiety about the rules

of composition, and fallacious thoughts about what makes writing “sophisticated”.

Writing is an affective and cognitive process. Cognition can influence the affective, while

the affective can influence cognition, if it is believed that attitudes can be changed or

molded from experience. Perhaps, better techniques can be offered in academic settings

to stifle the apprehension that so many writers, professional or student, face. In Writer’s

Block: The Cognitive Dimension, Mike Rose unfolds how apprehensiveness can lead to

blocking (high blockers contrasted with low-blockers) and the integral role cognition

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plays in the writing process: from the planning strategies, to the rigid rules of

composition, editing too early, and misleading assumptions so many people use in their

writing. “Writer’s block, then, can be defined as an inability to begin or continue writing

for reasons other than a lack of basic skill or commitment…but since blocking is a

composing process dysfunction that is related to skill in complex, not simple, ways, some

high-blockers might eventually produce quality papers” (Rose 3). An important question

lies within writing apprehension: Does a personality trait, such as neuroticism, have a

relationship with writing anxiety? If so, than it gives a reasonable explanation as to why

students may have low writing and testing scores. This paper attempts to give theoretical

framework to how people with neurotic traits link to writing apprehension, or what will

be called a theory of “neurotic writers”.

Background of the Big Five personality dimensions

The Big Five personality dimensions were developed through a scientific,

nomothetic, and lexical approach, among a long history of research. “One starting place

for a shared taxonomy is the natural language of personality description” (Oliver,

Norman, and Soto 117). In other words, how one uses language to describe his or her

attributes can extrapolate categories where majorities of people use common,

synonymous descriptors of their personality. Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientious,

Neuroticism, and Openness to Experience are the five broad terms that make up The Big

Five; each category having its own intricate traits to which it corresponds. Oliver and

Srivastana, in “The Big-Five Trait Taxonomy: History, Measurement, and Theoretical

Perspectives”, explains further, “the Big Five structure does not imply that personality

differences can be reduced to only five traits. Rather, these five dimensions represent

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personality at the broadest level of abstraction, and each dimension summarizes a large

number of distinct, more specific personality characteristics” (105).

There are exceptions and limitations in every type of study. There are unlimited

amounts of descriptive words once could use to describe aspects of their personalities.

Nomenclature of other cultures must be taken into consideration as well; and it is

currently being studied. This paper will focus on the personality trait of neuroticism and

how it affects writing.

Accounting for phenomena in the social world

Since the early philosophers (e.g. Ancient Greek), have found Neuroticism

(emotional instability) be common trait in people. Neuroticism seems to have the most

negative effect on a person’s attitudes and self-concept. As the world evolved in to

societies focused on academia and intellect, cognition was altered and the affective

domain was impacted.

Cognitive and the affective factors and their impact cannot be mutually exclusive.

Cognition is gaining knowledge through action, thought, senses, and experiences.

Affective relates to emotions and attitudes; these elements act as a seesaw. The Big Five

is an ontological consideration. As humans, we are born with certain temperaments and

attitudes. One may be able to alter an attitude with experience, cognition, and maturity.

Cognition is epistemological (we gain knowledge through experience), however, people

do not come into the world as a blank slate, but with genes and traits. Basic tendencies of

person come from biological considerations and direct our actions (how we react, make

choices, and so on). Experiences can alter self- conception; external influences can

impede upon attitudes, forcing one to adapt or maladapt, but the main traits and basic

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tendencies still exist and lie within the individual. Maturity and growth occur in

increments, but it is not until the next challenging situation that basic tendencies kick in

all over again. The individual must then go through another “growth spurt” and

realign/readjust their basic tendencies.

Universal typology for the phenomenon of writing apprehension

The traits linked with Neuroticism are: anxiety, angry hostility, depression, self-

consciousness, impulsivity, and vulnerability. When a person inherits neurotic

tendencies, they are already subject and sensitive to external influences (causal pathways)

defined by the nature and descriptive lexical terms of the trait itself. The trait of

neuroticism is a key ingredient to the phenomenon of writing apprehension, writing

anxiety, “writer’s block”, or simply, the fear of writing. “The term writing apprehension

was coined by Daly and Miller (1975). It refers to a situation and subject specific

individual difference associated with a person’s tendencies to approach or avoid

situations perceived to potentially require writing accompanied by some amount of

perceived evaluation” (Daly and Wilson 327).

By time students are in the education system, they bring their own personality

traits and basic tendencies. They either adapt or become maladapted to schooling. Their

self-concept and characteristic adaptions are triggered by neurotic tendencies. Their

emotional reactions to external influences affect their self-concept. Maturity in cognition,

through experience, can offset or set-off basic tendencies (neuroticism) in their work and

ability in an academic setting, depending upon external influences (such as a teacher or

deadlines), their self-concept, and attitudes.

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In the example of the “neurotic writer” the basic tendency is to be anxious,

whether the assignment makes him or her nervous or fearful of the evaluation for his

attempt at writing; the writer finds it difficult to start or complete the task at hand based

upon strategy and rules of composition; or the writer lacks the confidence or has self

doubt about one’s knowledge and ability. Depending upon the attitude a writer has about

writing will influence completion of the assignment or giving up and not complete it.

The teacher may or may not be harsh grading the assignment, but with feedback,

a student and teacher can see where the problem exists. Many teachers use affective

explanations when a capable student is struggling with writing (“He or she is too hard on

themselves”). Rather than looking for purely an affective explanation, one must consider

personality traits and the best way to readjust basic tendencies. Many people are writing

apprehensive; neuroticism is the missing link in studies and research. Using the resources

in this paper, people may be able to target “neurotic writers” and make corrective

adjustments to pedagogy and curriculum to discover new ways to teach composition; the

rules, organization of information, evaluation, and other complex concepts by measuring

neuroticism and writing apprehension.

Gaining insight due to typology

The Big Five taxonomy acts as a framework for use in research to outline possible

reasons for human traits and, further, attitudes. The questions in the Big Factor Inventory

allow a researcher to rate and scale points accumulated by a subject to find specific

personality traits; in other words, the BFI allows measurement of neuroticism. The

adoption of The Big Five into quantitative and qualitative research, via empirical

measurement, has offered evidence about how personality dimensions influence cognitive

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and affective components. Having neurotic personality traits exhibits attitudinal values

found within apprehensive writers.

The Daly-Miller test is a valid instrument that measures writing apprehension, or

social phenomena, using a questionnaire of 26 items and scaling answers. In 1975,

Michael Miller and John A Daly founded the writing apprehension test. They found that

students with negative writing experiences become apprehension and have a tendency to

procrastinate and avoid writing. The questions reflect the attitudes a person has towards

writing, which portrays components of their personality. A person who has a fear of

writing is more likely to suffer from low confidence, negative self-concept,

procrastination, stress, nervousness, and depression.

A study which yields insight about the classification of the apprehensive writer is

Lynn Bloom’s “The Composing Processes of Anxious and Non-Anxious Writers: A

Naturalistic Study”. Bloom classifies the difference between how anxious and non-

anxious college students compose their writing. Bloom explains common problems she

found in her naturalistic case study (from her abstract):

“Some of the common problems were the lack of structured writing times,

procrastination, and distractions. The writers who overcame their problems often

needed help only to organize their writing tasks into discrete steps or to budget

their time properly. Such case studies are theoretically and pedagogically useful to

writing teachers, because they can show discrepancies between writers'

perceptions of their effectiveness and their actual performances throughout their

writing processes. When teachers record naturalistic observations of writers at

work, they invite self-evaluation by anxious writers to modify work habits and

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streamline the writing process. In this way, students' writing apprehensions

decrease, and some of them learn to enjoy writing”.

Bloom used the Daly-Miller Test to measure writing apprehension in the students. She

observed the students, both anxious and non-anxious, in writing workshops to reduce

writing anxiety. She found that most non-anxious writers have more efficient patterns in

their writing than anxious writers. Non-anxious writers write with purpose, organization,

and time management, with control of their behavior. The Daly-Miller test is an

important and vital tool in gaining insight to this typology.

Rose comments on the work of Bloom in his book:

“Bloom finds that some of her anxious writers are, in fact, good writers and do

not necessarily steer clear of courses and majors that involve writing. Like their

less skilled but equally anxious peers, however, they evince certain

misconceptions (e.g., That others write better and with more ease than they do)

and characteristics (e.g., perfectionism, procrastination). Non-anxious writers, on

the other hand, tend to be realistic in their assessment of their writing and efficient

in the management of their time” (Rose 15).

Many researchers believe that writing apprehensive students would make career choices

that avoid writing, but this is not always the case. Neurotic writers may not be

apprehensive about all writing, but rather, certain topics that may trigger anxiety, or the

complexity of the writing. Other influence that may trigger frustration and anxiety is what

the teacher expects, their own value judgment of their writing, or judging the value of the

assignment.

A sequence of proclivities of the apprehensive writer

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The proclivities of a person or student can be highly influenced by personality

affecting cognitive, intrapersonal, and interpersonal domains. Cognition is how a student

commands the modes of discourse (EDNA), rules of composition, strategy and

organization of the task at hand. The intrapersonal domain involves a student’s work

ethic, attitude, and view of his or her self. The interpersonal domain involves group work,

evaluation, audience, collaboration, and the external influences of a task.

There are two outliers of neuroticism: perfectionism and low confidence.

Perfectionism is the inability to continue writing due to doubting the skills and the quality

of the product. Low confidence is the inability to start writing due to self-doubt or low

self esteem in which no matter what is produced, it is not quality. Symptoms of the

negative impacts neuroticism causes are what Martinez, et. al., refers to as non-starters,

noncompleters, and nonexhibitors in their article “Pain and Pleasure in Short Essay

Writing: Factors Predicting University Students’ Writing Anxiety and Writing Self-

Efficacy”;

“Through an examination of case studies, Barwick (1995) found that those with

writing anxiety could be classified into three categories: non-starters,

noncompleters, and nonexhibitors. Nonstarters avoid anxiety stemming from loss

or rejection and demonstrate denial, self-idealization, and criticism.

Noncompleters repress their aggressive impulses to avoid feeling loss or rejection.

Nonexhibitors repair the pain of loss through intellectualization or obsession in

taking apart and re-creating essays” (352).

Nonstarters and noncompleters match the category of low confidence neuroticism, due to

their lack of self-esteem and self-efficacy. Nonexhibitors match the category of

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perfectionism, which can lead to compulsive behaviors in trying to perfect one’s writing

by doubting the quality of their product.

These issues affect the cognitive domain since the writers may not feel that they

have the strategies or knowledge to combat certain compositional skills or modes of

discourse such as expository, descriptive, narrative, and argumentative writing. A

perfectionist writer may feel that their thoughts or sentences “don’t come out right”,

depending on the task, causing blocking. A low-confidence writer may feel that they are

incapable of the task and avoids it.

The intrapersonal domain affects the self-efficacy, self-concept, and work ethic to

writing. “Writing self-efficacy is influenced not only by the student’s own physiological

and emotional reactions to a task, but also by past experience and verbal feedback from

others” (Martinez, et. al. 352). Neuroticism influences the intrapersonal domain greatly

since it focuses on the attitudes and beliefs within the writer.

Finally, the intrapersonal domain focuses on external pressures of the writer.

Whether the task is collaborative or being evaluated by peers or a teacher, these factors

can place pressure on the writer causing nervousness, doubt their ability, or incompletion

of assignment to avoid rejection or failure of writing ability.

Variables that impact the construct of apprehensive writing

The theory postulates many different relationships about writing apprehension

and how the measurement of neuroticism, based upon factor analysis, play into the notion

of what Rose refers to as “writers block.” Mike Rose has done some profound work in

trying to measure “writer’s block”: using questionnaires, observation of the writing

process, and informal interviews post-assignment, to probe the thoughts behind college

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students’ actions. Rose is one of the pioneers of researching writers block and

apprehension using cognitive psychology theory (1984). His case study delineates and

describes “blocking behaviors” of college students, and uses questionnaires to “describe

blocking behaviors and items that describe cognitive and cognitive/attitudinal variables

related to blocking” (16). Rose claims that both high and low blockers use rules and

assumptions for organization and the writing process, but the difference is between

rigidity and flexibility in those rules may cause the writer to block.

“Skill problems have long been examined and a bewildering panoply of

treatments—from sentence-combining to role-playing—has been built. But when

the capable writer cannot write, we are puzzled and often resort to broad affective

explanations…It is possible that this affective bent explains why writer’s block

has never been the object of the educator’s scrutiny” (1-2).

Rose refers to cognition in an epistemological approach. Students learn rules,

organization, and evaluation of their writing, which contributes to the anxiety, fear,

apprehension, and frustration in writing. Many students miss deadlines, use inflexible

rules and strategies, which disrupt the flow of their writing. If the Big Five personality

domain of neuroticism is considered and applied to apprehensive writing, than this could

possibly give researchers practical implications to investigate and address the affective

explanations, and build upon the cognitive explanations, people use in the face of writer’s

block; and finally offer guidance to those suffering with “neurotic writing” and pedagogy

to the teachers teaching neurotic writers. After all, neuroticism—emotional instability,

lack of confidence, fear of evaluation, and negative emotions can all stagnate a person’s

ability to produce a document or doubt the product they are producing.

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Neurotic writing is not based upon the notions of Paul Federn. He “analyzes what

he refers to as “the neurotic style,” but that is more a faulty (with the faults suggesting

psychological disturbances) than a blocked style” (Rose 13). Rather, having the

personality of neuroticism, a person’s attitudes and discourse influenced and manifested

by this trait or basic tendency (e.g. “I get stuck while writing papers because I cannot find

the words I want to say). Evaluation of writing by a “neurotic writer” adds more anxiety;

and further “attitudes are manifested when writers evaluate what they have written”

(Rose 10). Actual psychological disturbances may clearly disrupt the writing process, but

not all anxious writers necessarily have psychological disturbances. Certain limitations of

style of prose, strategies for organization, the type of discourse being written about,

intrapersonal attitudes and feelings, or external pressures such as time limitations, peer or

teacher evaluation may cause an already anxious writer to block.

Federn is known for his works done with “ego psychology” and psychotics.

Martin Bergmann quotes Ferdern, in his article “The Place of Paul Federn’s Ego

Psychology in Psychoanalytic Metapsychology”, “our body and psyche belong

permanently to our ego” because “we feel that processes within us, even though they may

be interrupted by forgetting or unconsciousness, have a persistent origin within us…”

(97). Federn makes a strong point and can be linked to how a neurotic personality can

affect the ego of nonexhibitors and noncompleters. However, he only addresses one

domain of competence—the intrapersonal domain. There are many other components

within a writer that neuroticism can affect besides a bruised ego.

In Rose’s Afterword, he states: “The case study of Glenn (and of Stephanie in

“The Cognitive Dimension of Writer’s Block”) further suggests that personality

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characteristics could be related to proficient or limited composing. However, the present

study did not involve the sort of testing and extended clinical interviews that would be

necessary to diagnose cognitive style or dimensions of personality.” (103). The

measurement of neuroticism in writers (personality dimension) can be the missing link to

apprehensive writers and how they compose their writing.

Some other variables that impact apprehensive writers are apart of the

intrapersonal and interpersonal domains. Race, income, gender, and ethnicity impact an

individual’s self-concept and attitudes when it comes to intellectual and writing abilities.

There is now emphasis on standardized testing which can heighten anxiety levels

for students. Many studies show that variables of race and income impact the

performance of students on these tests. Douglass Harris states in his article, “Schools

serving student populations that are both low poverty and low minority are 89 times more

likely to be consistently high performing compared with high-poverty, high-minority

schools” (367). Although this claim has to do with standardized testing, it also can show

a relationship between low poverty and low minority and high poverty and high minority

student populations with writing scores and success. Schools in high poverty areas

already suffer from less opportunity in schooling. Minority students have to tend with

learning a new language and composition. Minority and high poverty also tend to be

synonomous, meaning that minority students will not receive the attention, skills, and

strategies they need to succeed in education—heightening anxieties in the learner. This

may lead to rejection of writing or avoiding a writing task.

Another common belief, due to standardized testing, is that females outperform

males when it comes to literacy and writing. Having this attitude, males are at risk for

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avoiding writing assignments, procrastination, prematurely doubt the quality of their

work, and place barriers on their skills in writing. Martinez et. al. claims “women are

twice as likely as men to experience anxiety” ( Benton, Robinson, Tseng, Newton, &

Benton, 2003; Herrington, Matheny, Curlette, McCarthy, & Penick, 2005 qtd. on 352).

Also, “Cayton (1990) argued that women may encounter more difficulty mediating

between their own voice and the demands of the academic audience, and that they are

likely to face more challenged because of conventions of power and authority in

discourse” (352).

Practical Implications of “Neurotic Writing”

Rose and Bloom both research college students writing composition, attitudes,

and intricacies. Although they reinforce the idea that apprehension/writing anxiety is

prevalent in students writing, they are using college students—students invested in their

work and have persevered through primary and secondary education. Many of these

students want to be educated and have a desire to grow and acquire new skills and

knowledge. They may have more anxiety than students who are not invested. College

students are more mature and have formed compositional strategies—even if they do

cause anxiety, they focus on their work more purposefully. Elementary and high school

students may not be completely invested and have not fully developed cognitive skills

and abilities. This does not mean they are not capable; rather there is a cognitive and

affect difference in their strategies, judgments, and values. This is why it is important to

measure personality traits in students to work on more effective strategies for

compositional growth for those students with neurotic traits, causing writing

apprehension.

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The practical implications for this theory are for both educators and learners and

addressing the issues associated between neuroticism and writing apprehension. In

contemporary schooling, administration and teachers place emphasis on high stakes

testing in order to measure student achievement and mastery of academic subjects such as

Language Arts. In order to address these issues, writing apprehension needs to be studied

in order to find new ways to approach the neurotic writer. In “Am I Really that Bad?:

Writing Apprehension and Basic Writers” Buley-Messeiner contributes to operational

issues of writing apprehension: “control cannot be acquired from teachers or textbooks.

Control must be developed through the meaningful connection of self, reader, text, and

intention. Furthermore, basic writers can learn to make that connection, as many of my

students have proved… As we work out possible answers with our students, their writing

apprehension may diminish and their writing confidence may grow” (15). Messeiner

suggests a method of teaching that allows connection to the students for them to learn and

engage in writing, rather than to fear it. This will help raise confidence levels and

hopefully control neurotic tendencies.

Reeves also addresses how to correct the issue of writing anxiety in her article

“Minimizing Writing Apprehension in the Learner-Centered Classroom”: “As

apprehensive writers have generally done very little writing and that has been judged

unsatisfactory by prior teachers, a good way to begin is with writing in class every day,

creating a non-threatening, practice-like atmosphere where traditional lecturing and

grading take a back seat” (39). Reeves’s suggestion allows for the interpersonal domain

to be addressed. The approach of putting less emphasis on grades and strict rules of

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composition will allow the writer to relieve his or her anxiety of being evaluated and not

having the skills to complete the task.

Mike Rose makes an important declaration in the afterword of his study; “In some

cases, writer’s block may be an inevitable part of compositional growth…Britton et al.

have noted that “difficulties may actually increase as the writer grows more proficient”.

And, perhaps, as the writer grows more proficient, writing begins to mean more and

involve more risks…Blocking can result” (104). Academic growth triggers neurotic

behavior. There are assignments due in multiple classes, time is limited, and social

pressures surround students amongst race and socioeconomic as variables of

consideration. Neurotic behavior is prevalent through history and has been found in every

type of personality study and research. An important factor is to find where the anxiety

begins to exist; this would require measurement of neurotic traits in students; this could

influence or possibly alter the education system. It is not possible to have complete

flexibility in all writing or deadlines, but finding new methods to help combat anxiety

that neurotic writers feel could be the answer to deal apprehensive writing. There is no

doubt that compositional growth breeds some type of anxiety, both professional and

student, but to have strategies and skills to be able to cope with neuroticism is vital. I

conclude with a quote by McCrae and Costa about the purpose of theory; “A theory

organizes findings to tell a coherent story, to bring into focus those issues and phenomena

that can and should be explained” (159). The phenomena of writing apprehension affects

all types of writers, but measuring neuroticism using the BFI, trait, and personality theory

could lead researchers to new relationships, evidence, and methods for dealing with

“Neurotic Writers”.

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Works Cited

Bloom. Lynn, Z. “The Composing Process of Anxious and Non-Anxious Writers: A Naturalistic Study.” Washington D.C: ERIC Clearinghouse. 1980.

Daly, John, A. and Miller, Michael, D. “The Empirical Development of an Instrument to Measure Writing Apprehension”. Research in the Teaching of English. Illinois: National Council of Teachers of English.1975.

Daly, John, A. and Wilson, Deborah, A. “Writing Apprehension, Self-Esteem, and Personality”. Research in the Teaching of English. Illinois: National Council of Teachers of English. 1983

Harris, Douglas, N. “High-Flying Schools, Student Disadvantage, and the Logic of NCLB.” American Journal of Education. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 2007.

Martinez, Christy, Teranishi, Kock, Ned, and Cass, Jeffrey. “Pain and Pleasure in Short Essay Writing: Factors Predicting University Students’ Writing Anxiety and Self-Efficacy”. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy. 2011. Academic Search Premier.

McCrae, Robert R., and Paul T. Costa Jr. "A Five-Factor Theory of Personality." Handbook of Personality: Theory and Research. New York, NY: Guilford Press. 2008.

Buley-Meissner, Mary Louise. " Am I Really That Bad?": Writing Apprehension and Basic Writers." Journal of Basic Writing. New York: City University of New York.1989.

National Research Council. Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2012.

Oliver, John, P., Naumann, Laura, P., and Soto, Christopher, J. “Paradigm Shift to the Integrative Big Five Trait Taxonomy: History, Measurements, and Conceptual Issues.” Handbook of personality: Theory and Research. New York, NY: Guilford Press. 2008.

Oliver, John, P. and Srivastava, Sanjay. “The Big Five Trait Taxonomy: History, Measurement, and Theoretical Perspectives. Handbook of Personality: Theory and Research. New York, NY: Guilford Press. 1999.

Reeves, LaVona, L. “Minimizing Writing Apprehension in the Learner-Centered Classroom”. The English Journal. Illinois: National Council of Teachers of English. 1997.

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Rose, Mike. Writer’s Block: The Cognitive Dimension. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 1984.

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