A Study of Electronic Dictionary Use and Attitudes among Iranian Students of Translation during COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Dictionaries are an integral part of language learning process to fulfill learners’ linguistic and academic needs. Recently, COVID-19 pandemic has had many effects on students’ life and learning styles, forcing them to switch to electronic learning during lockdown restrictions. As a result, electronic and Internet-based dictionaries became more available, altering learners’ attitudes in dealing with various types of dictionaries. This study aims at presenting an overview of Iranian university students’ attitudes, habits, and preferences in dictionary use in light of recent changes in their learning environment. Our goal is to gather data from Iranian students of translation studies through conducting a small-scale survey, adopted from the literature, and a number of semistructured interviews in order to explore their dictionary use and habits, means of obtaining dictionaries, types of dictionaries used for translation purposes, and the instructions they received on using dictionaries. The findings presented that the majority of students prefer electronic dictionaries; however, gender does not have a significant effect on the educational use of dictionaries. This study has some implications that could help authorities to advance electronic-based learning at universities.