This study employs a variationist approach to examine how Chinese English language teachers (CELTs) agentively negotiate their professional identities through the strategic use of vowel variants.

The sociophonetic analysis draws on data from the reading task and conversation, collected from 15 CELTs. Given Chinese second language learners’ general difficulties with differentiating TRAP and DRESS and producing adequate tongue movements in diphthongs, these vowels serve as potential variants that may index professionalism among CELTs. F1 and F2 values were extracted at 25%, 50%, and 75% of the vowel’s duration using Praat, then normalized using the Lobanov Metric in NORM. To measure distinction variability between TRAP and DRESS, a Pillai score was calculated for each individual using MANOVA in R. The Euclidean distance between the nucleus and off-glide during diphthongs (MOUTH, PRICE, GOAT, and FACE) was computed in R to represent diphthongal movements. Mixed-effects linear regression models in R (lmerTest) were used to identify potential social predictors for the pronunciation of these vowels.

The sociophonetic analysis links participants’ views on teacher qualifications and English accents to their pronunciation patterns. Those viewing Mandarin-accented pronunciation as undesirable for English teachers demonstrated more distinct TRAP and DRESS nuclei. Participants considering native-like pronunciation as a benchmark for English teachers’ expertise exhibited larger tongue movements in PRICE and MOUTH. Both groups employed standard variants to distance themselves from Mandarin-accented English, reinforcing the ideological association between nativeness and teacher qualifications. Therefore, the use of robust DRESS-TRAP nuclei and larger tongue movements in MOUTH and PRICE can be interpreted as strategies employed by these teachers to distance themselves from a “non-native” identity, which is often stigmatized within the English language teaching community. The utilization of these stylistic resources allows participants to construct a “native English speaker” persona and signify expertise in language teaching.