A Mixed-Methods Study of the Effect of Using Situation Comedies on Iranian EFL Learners’ Critical Reasoning and Action

This mixed-methods study, adopting a sequential explanatory design, aimed to (a) investigate the effect of situation comedies (sitcoms) on Iranian EFL learners’ critical reasoning as well as action and (b) explore learners’ attitudes about the way sitcoms could influence their critical reasoning and action. In this mixed-methods study, sixty learners were randomly selected and assigned to a control and an experimental group. While the control group participated in regular classes, the experimental group watched sitcoms. Before and after the treatment, the Persian version of the California Critical Thinking Skills Test, Form B (CCTST) (Khalili Hossein Zadeh, 2003) was utilized to measure participants’ reasoning skills.  To assess critical action, the Activism Orientation Scale (Corning Myers, 2002) was used. Quantitative data were analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). Some of the participants in the experimental group were interviewed about the way sitcoms affected their criticality. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The result of ANCOVA tests showed a significant difference between the two groups regarding their criticality. In support of quantitative results, the analysis of the interviews confirmed the effectiveness of sitcoms in improving learners’ criticality. Qualitative findings showed that sitcoms enhanced learners’ critical reasoning through inference and evaluation and raised their awareness of social issues and their eagerness to participate in life-changing activities. Integrating findings from the two phases confirmed that sitcoms increased learners’ awareness of the world and deepened their understanding of diversities.