Relationships Between Self-Perceived Oral Features and English Proficiency Among Advanced Korean EFL Learners

Abstract

This study explores how advanced Korean EFL learners’ self-perceived oral features (i.e., comprehensibility, intelligibility, and accentedness) correspond to both objective (TOEIC, OPIc) and self-rated proficiency measures, and identifies the proficiency factors that best predict each perceptual outcome. Adopting a quantitative design partially informed by Lee (2014), the study analyzed correlations and regressions between learners’ self-ratings and proficiency indicators. Thirty-four adult learners completed domain-specific self-assessment questionnaires on their oral English ability, and their standardized test scores (TOEIC and OPIc) were used as objective measures of proficiency. Correlation analyses showed that both TOEIC scores and self-rated proficiency were significantly associated with perceived comprehensibility and intelligibility, whereas the relationship with accentedness was weak. Regression analyses further revealed that TOEIC scores and self-rated speaking proficiency were the strongest predictors of comprehensibility, while TOEIC scores and self-rated listening proficiency significantly predicted intelligibility. In contrast, accentedness was not significantly predicted by any proficiency-related variable, suggesting that learners’ perceptions of their accent operate relatively independently from their objective proficiency. Overall, the findings indicate that self-perceptions of comprehensibility and intelligibility tend to align with measurable proficiency, whereas perceptions of accentedness may reflect affective or identity-related factors rather than linguistic competence. The present study suggests the need for reflective speaking training that incorporates self-assessment focused on comprehensibility and intelligibility, and indicates that pronunciation instruction for advanced learners should prioritize improving comprehensibility rather than reducing accent.