Identity processing styles as predictors of intercultural communicative competence and teaching professionalism: a case of Iranian EFL teachers

Teachers’ professionalism (TP) and intercultural communicative competence (ICC) are two prominent features of second or foreign language (L2) teachers, and identity processing styles, which shape their practices and perceptions, may significantly influence these constructs. Hence, this study investigated the contribution of identity processing styles to L2 teachers’ TP and ICC. To this end, 107 Iranian EFL teachers were selected through snowball sampling from private language institutes who first completed the ICC and then the TP questionnaires. Data analysis using multiple regression showed that normative style significantly and strongly predicted ICC, followed by information-oriented styles, but not the diffuse-avoidant style. Moreover, the information-oriented style could predict teachers’ TP significantly, pursued by the normative style. The diffuse-avoidant was still a non-significant predictor. Thus, the findings recommend that identity processing styles, mainly normative and information-oriented approaches, play an important role in influencing L2 teachers’ professionalism and intercultural communicative competence. These findings underscore the significance of enhancing such identity-processing tendencies in teacher training programs and employment strategies to foster instructional effectiveness in multicultural educational settings.