Caroline (2020). Students' experiences of anxiety in an assessed, online, collaborative project. Computers and Education, 143, article no. 103675.For guidance on citations see FAQs.

Previous research has highlighted the importance of emotions of learners in online learning settings. However, much of this research has tended to focus on individual learning situations rather than social learning activities. The exploration of the emotional experiences of distance learners has also received little attention when compared to other student groups (e.g. full-time or blended learning students). As many distance learners are in full- or part-time employment or have other commitments, the emotions experienced and the reasons for these emotions might be greatly different to other student populations. This study investigated these issues by exploring the emotional experiences of distance learners when undertaking an assessed, online, collaborative group project. Self-report data about the emotions experienced and their causes were gathered using a structured diary at six times points during the group activity. Findings revealed that learners experienced a ranged of pleasant and unpleasant emotions before, during and after the collaborative activity. Feelings of satisfaction and relief were the most reported pleasant emotions and feelings of anxiety and frustration were the most frequently reported unpleasant emotions. To conclude this paper, implications for educators are briefly discussed and reflections on using an online diary to explore student emotions are provided.

There is growing recognition of the importance of emotions in academic online learning contexts. However, there is still little known about the role of emotions in social and collaborative online learning settings, especially the relationship between emotions and student participation. To explore this relationship, this study used a prospective longitudinal research design to follow 46 distance learning students throughout a 3-week assessed, online, collaborative activity. This approach allowed the fluctuating and dynamic aspects of emotions to be explored as well as the relationship between emotions and student participation in the collaborative activity. Self-report data were gathered using a semi-structured online diary at five time points throughout the task (once at the start of the collaborative activity, three times during the activity, and the final entry after the activity had finished). Findings revealed that learners generally perceived pleasant emotions (such as relief, satisfaction and enjoyment) to have positive impacts, or no impact, on participation, whereas unpleasant emotions (such as anxiety, frustration, and disappointment) were generally perceived to have negative impacts, or no impact, on participation. Interestingly, however, anxiety, and to a smaller extent frustration, were perceived by a number of students to have positive impacts during the activity. To conclude this paper, implications for educators are highlighted.