The Correlation between Self-Confidence and Filler Words in Speaking English

The research examined the relationship between students’ self-confidence and their use of filler words when speaking English. A correlational research design was implemented for this study. The population of this research was the English Literature Department 2023, Universitas Negeri Padang from NK1-NK5, and the sample consisted of NK2 and NK4 students selected by cluster random sampling. The instruments of this research were a Speaking performance task and Self- confidence questionnaire. Data analysis techniques in this research used Spearman Rank Test and the data were analyzed using SPSS windows 25. Analysis of the study showed that the participants had an average of 64.5 in the self-confidence measure, indicating a below-moderate level of confidence in their speaking English ability. The students' use of filler words averaged 22, indicating a low frequency in their speaking English. Moreover, the significance value was 0.901 which is >0.05. It indicates that the two variables have no significant correlation. Thus, the Ho hypothesis was accepted and the Ha hypothesis was rejected, confirming no correlation between students' use of filler words and their self-confidence in speaking class.