Interpreting - Volume 26, Issue 1, 2024

Abstract

There is general consensus among interpreting practitioners and scholars that numbers pose particular problems in simultaneous interpreting. Adopting the view that fluency disruptions in interpreters’ renditions are signals of cognitive processing problems, the authors aim to isolate those contextual and textual factors which increase the likelihood of disfluencies when rendering numbers present in a source speech. In the reported study, we analyse data from the European Parliament Translation and Interpreting Corpus (EPTIC): we focus on target-text segments whose corresponding source segment contains a number and we find the best predictors of disfluencies by applying a generalized linear mixed model. Our approach is confirmatory and so the model accounts for factors that have been suggested in earlier studies as being associated with interpreting fluency. These factors include the nativeness of the original speaker, the type of number, the frequency of numbers in the same sentence, omission, language pair and whether the text was originally delivered impromptu or read out, and at what pace. The outcomes suggest that important predictors of disfluent renditions include omission, the frequency of numbers in a sentence and the type of number; these can be said to contribute to interpreters’ cognitive load when they process numbers.

Abstract

This study introduces a groundbreaking automated methodology for measuring ear–voice span (EVS) in simultaneous interpreting (SI). Traditionally, assessing EVS – a critical temporal metric in SI – has been hampered by labour-intensive and time-consuming manual methods that are prone to inconsistency. To overcome these challenges, our research harnesses state-of-the-art natural language processing (NLP) technologies, including automatic speech recognition (ASR), sentence boundary detection (SBD) and cross-lingual alignment, to automate EVS measurement. We deployed a comprehensive array of NLP models and evaluated the automated pipelines on a 20-hour English-to-Portuguese SI corpus which featured 57 varied audio pairings. The findings are encouraging: the most effective model combination achieved a median EVS error of less than 0.1 seconds across the corpus. Moreover, the automated pipelines exhibited a high level of accuracy, strong correlation and substantial agreement with manual measurements when assessing median EVS for individual audio pairs. Despite these satisfactory results, certain challenges persist with some NLP models, indicating clear avenues for future research. This study not only introduces a groundbreaking approach to large-scale EVS measurement but also propels the automation of process analysis in Interpreting Studies.

Abstract

This article investigates the power dynamics at play in interpreter-mediated discourse interactions in the district courts in Ghana. Using audio recordings of authentic courtroom proceedings, we analyzed the discursive practices performed by court actors, especially interpreters, and the ways in which these practices signal their power or the lack thereof. We also examine the way language is employed by dominant actors to intrude on the liberty of less dominant actors in the courtroom and how this is sometimes resisted by the latter actors. We couch our analyses in Fairclough’s theory of language and power and Obeng’s theory of language and liberty. Our analysis shows that interpreters in Ghanaian courts are tacitly imbued with an inordinate amount of power, which is exercised in the service of the courts. The interpreters in our study employ speech acts such as questioning, scolding and persuading to control the discursive behavior of lay court users (e.g., litigants, witnesses) in order to ensure efficient court proceedings. These acts impinge on the liberty of litigants as they are not free to engage the court in a manner suitable to them. This study raises questions about the interpreter’s neutrality and professionalism and its findings could be useful to those entities interested in improving legal interpreting standards.

Abstract

Telephone-based remote interpreting has come into widespread use in multilingual encounters, all the more so in times of refugee crises and the large influx of asylum-seekers into Europe. Nevertheless, the linguistic practices in this mode of communication have not yet been examined comprehensively. This article therefore investigates selected aspects of turn-taking and clarification sequences during semi-authentic telephone-interpreted counselling sessions for refugees (Arabic–German). A quantitative analysis reveals that limited audibility makes it more difficult for interpreters to claim their turn successfully; in most cases, however, turn-taking occurs smoothly. The trouble sources that trigger queries are mainly content-related and interpreters vary greatly in the ways they deal with such difficulties. Contrary to what one might expect, the study shows that coordination fails only rarely during telephone-based remote interpreting.

Abstract

This article analyses public service interpreters’ self-perceptions of the role played by their gender in their professional practice, a matter unexplored until now in interpreting studies. Through a thematic analysis of 95 responses to a qualitative online survey in Finland, the United Kingdom and Spain, this study identified (1) whether interpreters perceive their gender as significant in interpreter-mediated encounters; (2) in which situations interpreters believe their gender to be relevant; (3) the reasons why gender becomes significant in interpreter-mediated encounters, and (4) whether the interpreter’s gender has an impact on their credibility and trust-building. The results suggest that the interpreter’s gender plays a significant role in their interactions, having an impact on both the interpreter’s and the client’s experience. The participants highlight the significance of the interpreter’s gender, especially in healthcare situations, and discuss it in connection with the client’s level of comfort and preference; relatability based on shared experiences, gender biases and expectations; sexism; intersectionality, and the interpreter’s visibility. These results are examined with respect to the literature on gender in interpreting studies and paths for future research are suggested.

This article reviews The role of the educational interpreter: Perceptions of administrators and teachersAdvances in educational interpreting978-1-944838-93-5978-1-944838-91-1

This article reviews The Routledge handbook of public service interpreting978-0-367-27842-7