an exploration of iranian efl learners’ emotions and their underlying reasons during the covid-19 pandemic: a narrative study

This narrative study aimed to probe iranian english language learners’ emotions towards online courses during the covid-19 pandemic and elucidate their underlying reasons. the participants of the study included 20 undergraduate english learners with different years of learning experiences, who were chosen using maximum variation sampling. data were collected using personal documents and semi-structured interviews, which were guided by meta-emotion interview questions adapted from benesch (2013). the collected data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. the findings of the study indicated that the participants experienced both positive and negative emotions. the majority of the participants talked about the positive emotions of joy and happiness. furthermore, the most frequent negative emotions involved anger, anxiety, boredom, and powerlessness. the analysis of the data revealed that the positive emotions were mainly experienced due to learning at home, physical ease, and availability of education and learning. moreover, negative emotions were experienced because of several factors, such as technical problems of the online educational system, lack of trust between teachers and learners, lack of non-verbal communication, and procrastination regarding class tasks and activities.