NATIVE-LIKE PRONUNCIATION OR INTELLIGIBILITY? SABRATHA UNIVERSITY EFL STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF ENGLISH ACCENT AND SUCCESSFUL COMMUNICATION

Abstract

The field of contemporary second language acquisition has increasingly favoured the Intelligibility Principle over the conventional Nativeness Principle; however, learners of English as a Foreign Language frequently find themselves caught between the demand for communicative clarity and the aspiration to meet standard native-speaker norms. This mixed-methods study aimed to explore this intricate duality among EFL students at Sabratha University, examining how socio-indexical factors, affective variables, and educational experiences influence the pronunciation targets learners adopt. For data collection, a stratified convenience sample was employed, comprising 73 undergraduate and postgraduate students drawn from Sabratha University, who completed an adapted EPNI-Q questionnaire containing 24 core Likert-scale items as well as open-ended qualitative prompts intended to elicit student strategies. The quantitative survey data underwent systematic evaluation through descriptive and inferential statistics, whereas the qualitative textual responses were analysed using thematic analysis. The results revealed a striking "Ideology versus Pragmatism Paradox": even though an overwhelming majority (90.4%) agreed that successful communication depends on clarity of speech rather than accent perfection, 75.3% at the same time expressed a personal ambition to approximate native-speaker phonological norms. This persisting preference is strongly driven by perceived socio-economic prestige, employability advantages, and the affective confidence gains that are deemed necessary. Moreover, a significant institutional mismatch emerged, given that local instructors often impose native models even though 84.9% of students favour assessment rubrics grounded in intelligibility. ultimately, the study highlights an urgent need for higher education curricula in Libya and in broader EFL contexts to reorient pronunciation instruction toward the Lingua Franca Core, to integrate diverse World Englishes, and to validate students' natural bilingual L1 identities..