University Student and Teacher Perceptions of Emotions and Learning: a Qualitative Study

Traditionally, psychologists have differentiated three aspects of human learning: cognition, motivation and emotion. Research to date has tended to study these processes in isolation, and the role of emotions in learning has been regarded as a less significant factor in affecting successful learning outcomes than cognition or motivation. More recently the importance of emotion is being emphasised, particularly in higher education. Building on a previous research project in the area of university student perceptions of feedback this paper reports preliminary findings from an exploratory study intended to further investigate university student and academic staff perceptions of emotions and their associated cognitive appraisals in the learning and teaching context.