Writing anxiety has been a topic in the SLA field for several decades; since the connection
between writing anxiety and writing performance appear to be stronger in an ESL context. In
this view, the purpose of the research is to explore how second language writing anxiety could
influence postgraduate dissertation writing. In this qualitative case study, three Malaysian
postgraduate students were interviewed and were asked to complete Cheng’s (2004) Second
Language Writing Anxiety Inventory. Applying the thematic analysis method, the findings were
generated based on the participants’ responses to 91 in-depth interview questions and 22
statements in the inventory that supplies information regarding their cognitive anxiety, somatic
anxiety, and behavioural avoidance tendencies. The findings revealed that second language
writing anxiety could disrupt overall writing progress and influence writing approach, writing
process and written output. In addition, the findings also showed that the results of the
participants’ trait second language writing anxiety may not necessarily predict their state
writing anxiety experience, which could include a form of social anxiety, and time anxiety
experience. Therefore, the significance of the study lies in its attempt to promote greater
understanding of the affective phenomenon and to inform efforts to improve postgraduate
student-writer’s motivation and dissertation writing performance. The study highlights
theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications by offering insights on the
complexity of second language writing anxiety in postgraduate dissertation writing.
