Sri Wahyuningsih, Yazid Basthomi, Nunung Suryati, Maria Hidayati, Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi
While prior studies have often examined research identity and professional development as separate domains, few have offered a holistic perspective on how teacher educators navigate their dual roles as scholars and practitioners, particularly through digital engagement. Addressing this gap, the present study investigates Indonesian EFL teacher educators' perceptions of research identity in the digital age. Employing a qualitative multiple case study design, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with seven participants from two public and three private universities. The findings, supported by Natural Language Processing (NLP)-assisted thematic modelling using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), reveal that research identity is a dynamic and multifaceted construct shaped by teaching practices, academic interests, personal backgrounds, and a commitment to addressing practical challenges in language education. Digital technologies are pivotal in facilitating professional growth by expanding access to scholarly resources, enabling continuous learning, fostering academic collaboration, and bridging research and teaching practices. This study underscores the need for stronger institutional support and equitable digital infrastructure, contributing to the limited literature on research identity in digitally evolving academic contexts, particularly within underrepresented Global South settings. © 2025 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).
Department of English, Faculty of Letters, Universitas Negeri Malang, East Java, Malang, Indonesia; Department of English, Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia
