Many students find economics difficult. Undergraduate courses often record high failure rates, and research in economics education reflects concerns about the quality of students’ learning. Such concerns may be more acute in the South African context, where academic underpreparedness among students is one of many challenges facing higher education. Despite the emotional connotations of difficulty and challenge frequently associated with economics, affective aspects of learning are seldom considered explicitly in the design of pedagogy and curriculum. Likewise, emotions barely feature in research on teaching and learning in economics. The Threshold Concepts Framework (TCF) offers a view of learning that encompasses both cognitive and affective elements. This approach is increasingly influential within and beyond the discipline in exploring qualitative dimensions of learning. However, this scholarship has yet to delve deeply into emotional aspects of learning in economics. This paper draws on a study that explored the processes and experiences of economics students’ learning in a threshold concepts-infused tutorial programme that complemented a traditionally lectured Intermediate Microeconomics course at a South African university. The study used Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA), in which participants themselves generate and analyze data representing their experiences. Students were deeply involved in exploring their learning, in focus groups, individual interviews, and written reflections. These sources produced detailed representations, in the participants’ voices, of their learning in economics. We offer an account of the range of emotional responses they described, foregrounding their words. These descriptions depict learning in economics as a strongly affective process, coloured by a rich wash of emotions, both positive and painful. These responses stemmed from engaging with disciplinary content, from pedagogy and assessment practices, and from students’ views of themselves as learners in the discipline. Emotions in turn affected students’ motivation, learning behaviour and outcomes. We reflect on how these findings might inform teaching approaches that support and facilitate disciplinary learning.

许多学生发现经济学困难。本科课程的失败率往往很高，经济学教育方面的研究反映出对学生学习质量的担忧。在南非的情况下，这种担忧可能更加严重，因为学生的学术准备不足是高等教育面临的许多挑战之一。尽管经济学经常遇到困难和挑战的情感含义，但在教学法和课程设计中很少明确考虑学习的情感方面。同样，在经济学的教与学研究中情感几乎没有。阈值概念框架（TCF）提供了一种涵盖认知和情感因素的学习观点。在探索学习的质性维度时，这种方法在本学科内外具有越来越大的影响力。但是，该奖学金尚未深入研究经济学中的情感方面。本文以一项研究为基础，该研究通过注入阈值概念的辅导课程探索了经济学学生的学习过程和经验，该课程补充了南非大学传统授课的中级微观经济学课程。该研究使用了交互式定性分析（IQA），参与者可以自己生成和分析代表他们的经历的数据。在小组讨论，个人访谈和书面反思中，学生们深入地探索了他们的学习方式。这些资源以参与者的声音表达了详细的陈述，他们的经济学学习。我们提供了他们描述的情感反应范围的说明，并突出了他们的话语。这些描述将经济学中的学习描述为一种强烈的情感过程，其特征是充斥着积极而痛苦的情绪。这些反应源于学科内容，教学法和评估实践以及学生对自己作为该学科学习者的看法。情绪反过来影响了学生的动力，学习行为和学习成果。我们思考这些发现如何为支持和促进学科学习的教学方法提供信息。充满了积极而痛苦的情绪。这些反应源于学科内容，教学法和评估实践以及学生对自己作为该学科学习者的看法。情绪反过来影响了学生的动力，学习行为和学习成果。我们思考这些发现如何为支持和促进学科学习的教学方法提供信息。充满了积极而痛苦的情绪。这些反应源于学科内容，教学法和评估实践以及学生对自己作为该学科学习者的看法。情绪反过来影响了学生的动力，学习行为和学习成果。我们思考这些发现如何为支持和促进学科学习的教学方法提供信息。