Conceptualizing Emotions in Social Studies Education

This review of research investigates how the field of social studies education conceptualizes emotions within its literature. Analysis indicates a lack of theoretical and empirical engagement with emotions, even when the presence of emotions is explicitly acknowledged. Drawing on Michalinos Zembylas’s framework for researching emotions in education, the authors reveal multiple conceptions of emotions undergird research and practice, yet these are largely unexamined in the literature. The complicated nature of emotions requires careful attention, and attempting to understand the roles they play in teaching and learning provides significant opportunities for growth in social studies research and practice.