Bilingual Teachers' Perceived Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Identity Conflicts in the Academia: Unpacking the Sources and Outcomes

ABSTRACT This qualitative study used individual interviews and narrative frames to understand 21 Iranian bilingual teachers' lived experiences of intrapersonal and interpersonal identity conflicts. The findings based on the data analysis with MAXQDA software showed that teachers experienced different intrapersonal and interpersonal identity conflicts with different sources and outcomes. Intrapersonal conflicts were caused mainly by ‘professional values and expectations’, ‘psycho‐affective factors’ and ‘educational system’, while interpersonal ones primarily emanated from ‘teachers’ dissimilar beliefs and methodologies', ‘old educational policies’ and ‘weak communication among colleagues’. The findings also demonstrated that intrapersonal identity conflicts mostly end in ‘negative emotions and behaviours’, ‘classroom instruction challenges’ and ‘professional growth hindrances' among teachers, while interpersonal identity conflicts ‘damaged organisational relationships', ‘created teacher isolation, ‘produced negative emotions’ and ‘reduced pedagogical efficiency’. This study extends prior research on teacher education and teacher identity conflicts and discusses implications for theory and practice in bilingual education.