Constructing Identity Through Spoken English: Self-Perception of Indonesian EFL Learners in Oral Communication

This study explores how university EFL students perceive their identity when speaking English during classroom interactions. The participants were six eighth-semester students from the English Language Education Study Program at UIN Ar-Raniry Banda Aceh, all of whom had actively engaged in spoken English in formal classroom settings and had completed Advanced Language Skills Courses. Employing a qualitative descriptive design, data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. The findings reveal six major themes: the shifting self and identity fluidity across languages, language anxiety and self-perception, context-dependent identity, moments of agency and pride, speaking identities in classroom and social contexts, and identity alignment and tension. In this study, identity construction is understood as a fluid, dynamic, and socially negotiated process that occurs through spoken interaction, a perspective that differs from previous studies which largely focused on written communication or treated identity as static. Students perceive their identity as fluid, emotionally mediated, and highly dependent on classroom environment, peer composition, topic familiarity, and lecturer behaviour. Supportive environments foster confident identities, while judgmental settings trigger anxiety and silence. Positive experiences such as helping peers, receiving recognition, and spontaneous success reinforce identity as capable speakers. Outside the classroom, students feel more authentic and confident due to greater autonomy. Identity alignment with core self varies from consistency to tension to enhancement. These findings contribute to understanding the emotional and psychological dimensions of oral communication in EFL contexts, offering insights for more empathetic and effective teaching practices.