ABSTRACT Natural disasters significantly disrupt educational systems and challenge community resilience. This study specifically focuses on a displacement‐based disaster context, in which large numbers of students were physically uprooted from their home communities and forced to continue their education remotely from temporary shelters – a scenario that differs qualitatively from non‐displacement crises such as pandemics. This mixed‐methods study examines how university students in Turkey adapted to emergency online learning following the devastating February 2023 earthquake. To explore the complex relationships between student motivation, attitudes, and satisfaction in post‐disaster online education, and understand the lived experiences of students navigating this transition. A secondary objective was to examine how displacement severity and psychosocial disruption shaped these relationships within the limitations of the cross‐sectional design. A sequential explanatory mixed‐methods design was employed. The quantitative phase surveyed 456 university students using validated scales measuring motivation, attitudes, and satisfaction with online learning. Hayes' mediation model tested the mediating role of attitudes. The qualitative phase included semi‐structured interviews with 24 purposively selected students to explore their experiences in depth. Quantitative findings revealed that student attitudes were significantly associated with the relationship between online learning motivation and satisfaction through mediation analysis (indirect association = 0.13, 95% CI 0.03, 0.21). Students with positive attitudes toward online learning demonstrated higher motivation (β = 0.25, p < 0.001) and greater satisfaction (β = 0.49, p < 0.001). Qualitative themes emerged around community support systems, technological challenges, emotional resilience, and adaptive learning strategies. Students emphasised the importance of peer connections and instructor empathy in maintaining engagement. Post‐disaster educational transitions – particularly those involving physical displacement – require comprehensive community support that addresses both technological and psychosocial needs. The absence of direct trauma or displacement measures constitutes a key limitation that future research should address through longitudinal and trauma‐sensitive designs. Positive attitudes serve as crucial mediators in student adaptation, highlighting the importance of fostering resilient educational communities during crises.
Ahmet Özbay (2026) studied this question.