Sign Languages Commons^™

Exploring Healthcare Interpreting For Chinese Immigrants In New Zealand: Current Practices And Stakeholder Perspectives, Yunduan Gao

International Journal of Interpreter Education

No abstract provided.

Editorial Commentary, Kim B. Kurz, Danielle Hunt

International Journal of Interpreter Education

No abstract provided.

International Journal Of Interpreter Education, Volume 14, Issue 1

International Journal of Interpreter Education

No abstract provided.

Translanguaging In Court Proceedings: How Interpreter Pedagogy Needs To Address Monolingual Ideologies In Court Interpreting That Delegitimize Litigants’ Voices, Alan James Runcieman

International Journal of Interpreter Education

The majority of court proceedings are based on monolingual ideologies that assume that the court is speaking one, specific, bounded language and the litigant another. Thus, interpreting processes in this context are framed as an L-B to L-A interchange, a bridge between two linguistically and culturally discrete entities. In increasingly superdiverse societies, however, court interpreters are finding that their clients do not always respect these rigid boundaries, often engaging instead in what has become to be known as translanguaging, a form of linguistically fluid, hybrid, and often creative discourse that sources all the client’s (para)linguistic repertoires, acquired throughout their personal …

Are Two Heads Better Than One? Interpreting Students’ Moral Reasoning Skills, Robyn Dean, Vincent Samar, Daniel Maffia

International Journal of Interpreter Education

The Defining Issues Test (DIT) is an internationally used instrument that measures an individual’s moral reasoning skills—that is, how an individual explains right and just action. DIT scores are correlated with age and education, and they are also correlated with clinical performance when administered to professional practitioners. Practicing signed language interpreters’ scores, however, were not reflective of their age and education in one study, being much lower than those of practitioners from other professions. Providing communication access for individuals who do not share the same language as their service providers is grounded in social justice and equity, yet practicing interpreters’ …

Cai Tool-Supported Si Of Numbers: A Theoretical And Methodological Contribution, Francesca Maria Frittella

International Journal of Interpreter Education

Numbers are an area of interpreting that is particularly prone to human error. Thanks to recent advancements in automatic speech recognition (ASR) and artificial intelligence (AI) technology, computer-assisted interpreting (CAI) tools may soon be used to enhance delivery accuracy for numbers during simultaneous interpreting (SI).

Given the novelty of the topic, the impact of in-booth CAI tool support on the SI of numbers is still largely under-researched. First, only a few studies have addressed the topic. Second, due to a number of methodological limitations, their findings yield only a partial understanding of the issue. The present work aims to make …

Dynamic Sight Translation: A Simultaneous Interpreting Strategies Driver, Kun Yan, Zhongwei Song

International Journal of Interpreter Education

This paper reports on eliciting anticipation strategy, a common strategy in simultaneous interpreting (SI) via sight translation (ST). A new ST variant, the dynamic type, was designed in a modular and progressive manner to facilitate the trainees’ transition into SI at the early stage of learning. The new tool was used and tested under a framework of action research that was conducted continuously over 3 years. Despite some limitations, the longitudinal study finds that the newly designed set of exercises is not only a skill development and transfer enabler but also a contributor to eliciting SI-related strategies. This article explains …

Book Review: Theorising Interpreting Studies, Rui Du, Weiwei Wang

International Journal of Interpreter Education

No abstract provided.

Examining The Divide: Understanding The Perceptions And Relationships Between Community And Educational Interpreters, Jordan Ward

Graduate Theses, Action Research Projects, and Professional Projects

Interpersonal relationships lay the foundation for the work of ASL–English interpreters. Professional relationships can have a significant impact on one’s behaviors, physical health, and psychological health, all of which can have impact on the work of an interpreter. This thesis explores the perceptions of, and relationships between, interpreters working primarily in community and K-12 educational settings. Prior to this study, no known research has been conducted examining the nature of interpersonal relationships between professional interpreters working in settings different from their own. An exploratory study was conducted through a survey and an interview to understand if and how interpreters develop …

Cultural Familiarity Through Mentorship: A Way To Increase People Of Color Retention Within Interpreting Education And The Profession, Valerie Manseau

Graduate Theses, Action Research Projects, and Professional Projects

The goal of this study is to explore one way to increase the retention of People of Color (PoC) within the interpreting field in hopes of increasing numbers within Interpreter Training Programs (ITPs). Short term mentoring experiences consisted of four stages with various mentors of different backgrounds. I gathered reflective data via journaling pre- and post-mentorship meetings. This is a personal narrative from a recent ITP graduate entry-level interpreter who is continuing to seek mentorship and growth while starting in the professional field. Interpreter mentoring for this project consists of discussions centered around interpreting skills, decision making, self-care aspects, self-identity, …

Esteem, Why Should We Care? The Importance Of Work-Esteem In Our Field, Our Work, And Ourselves, Katrina N. Wadsworth

Graduate Theses, Action Research Projects, and Professional Projects

Esteem is an important part of our lives as human beings both personally, with selfesteem, and professionally, with work-esteem. Work-esteem is important to the work of interpreters, and it can also affect the work produced by interpreters. Esteem encompasses a lot of different aspects, but this research on work-esteem focuses on the theories of Maslow and his hierarchy of needs of motivational theory and Rosenberg’s self-esteem theory and the corresponding self-esteem scale. The literature review explores Maslow’s and Rosenberg’s connection to work-esteem, self-esteem’s impact on work, life experiences impact on esteem, work-esteem as a perception/outcome/or both, interpersonal relationships and esteem, …

Playfully Expanding Interpreter Development, Keyanda Hall

Graduate Theses, Action Research Projects, and Professional Projects

According to research, new experiences that start from creating interactions such as role playing, stimulus, or group discussions are a result of participant actively learning (Terehoff, 2002). The focal point of this study is exploring a method of experiential learning while adults students learn new language. Basic understanding of early language acquisition and second language acquisition is used to better understand how and why play can be a much-needed component in the classroom. The experiential method of learning through play has been used to gain perspective about adult learning preferences in the interpreting field. The participants were American Sign Language …

Exploring The Underlying Forces In Interpreter Education In The United States, Chris Mcgaha

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

In interpreter education programs across the United States, future practitioners are shaped and molded by many factors during their education journey, some explicit and some implicit. Those factors can include the formal curriculum, faculty and staff diversity, and interactions with mentors and peers. The underlying forces or hidden curriculum that often goes unseen can impact a student’s educational journey positively or negatively. The impact can vary depending on certain demographic variables of the individual students. The data was analyzed using a system thinking framework and validated that there are underlying forces influencing interpreter student development. The following research briefly examined …

Assessing The Accessibility Of The Judicial System's Arrest-To-Parole Timeline For People Who Are D/Deaf And Hard-Of-Hearing, Evelyn G. Birnbaum

University Honors Theses

The judicial system is inaccessible to many groups of people for a variety of reasons, one of those populations being the d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing community (DHH). This community faces prejudice and discrimination in many institutions because of their identity, but within the justice system, this prejudice is compounded and controlled by poor legislation and either the lack of, or barriers to, effective communication. At every point in the chronological timeline from getting arrested to achieving parole, individuals who are d/Deaf or Hard of Hearing face discrimination and obstacles that their hearing counterparts do not. The discrimination they face …

Adjusting To Change: Learning American Sign Language Online During A Global Pandemic, Kara Gournaris

Northwest Journal of Teacher Education

Second language acquisition of American Sign Language (ASL) requires opportunities for engagement with native language models (Krashen, 1988). The shift to online instruction due to the impact of COVID-19 presented unique challenges for ASL programs across the United States. With little time to redesign courses, instructors and students had to navigate the experience of online learning together. The students who participated in this 2020 study at Western Oregon University (WOU) shared their raw experiences related to this transition, and unfortunately, one year later, many of the same barriers reported by students persist. The purpose of this article is to share …

Error Occurrences And Types Between Certified And Non-Certified Interpreters, Ariel Baeseman

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

Much of the standard interpreting practice is dependent on an interpreter’s certification level. As a result, many interpreters find themselves at assignments for which they are not qualified. This study aimed to identify what differences in error rates - if any - were present between interpreting samples from certified and non-certified interpreters of similar experience levels. In a sample of ten interpreters with less than five years of professional interpreting experience, split evenly between certified and non-certified, each provided an unrehearsed interpretation of the same stimulus to be analyzed. The sample was rated against a rubric measuring knowledge-lean interpreting skills …

Tell Me How You Really Feel: A Qualitative Look At The Trepidation Felt By American Sign Language Interpreters When Voicing Taboo And Strong Language, Devon E. Wilson

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

Interpreters are humans and, despite historical assumptions and beliefs, do not remain completely neutral when performing interpreting duties. At times, interpreters will feel emotions that surface as a reaction to source messages. These emotions can arise quickly with little warning, causing interpreters to navigate them in a matter of seconds and make decisions regarding how to best interpret the source message. This is especially true if the source message contains any form of taboo / strong language. Such messages may cause trepidation when voicing - working from American Sign Language into English - and word choices may affect the hearing …

Exploring Teaming Dynamics In Video Remote Interpreting, Jana R. Mauldin

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

Collaborative work is an integral part of providing a successful interpretation in certain situations, and the practice of working in Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) settings has left interpreters without their usual strategies or approaches available to work as a team. This research study utilized an online questionnaire to explore strategies employed and challenges faced by interpreters working together in VRI. A descriptive survey revealed that interpreters alter their approach to teaming, juggle a multitude of technological demands, and have created inventive ways of connecting or using technology to their advantage. Findings also indicate the need for increased training in VRI, …

Health, Human Rights, And Structural Violence: Identifying Barriers To Healthcare Access Of Deaf American Sign Language Users In Rhode Island, Christine A. West

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

Deaf American Sign Language (ASL) users possess both human and legal rights to health. Yet, despite these rights, this linguistic minority group continues to experience challenges in accessing health care services. Using a structural violence framework, this study identifies the barriers to healthcare access of Deaf ASL users in one particular state - Rhode Island. More specifically, this study seeks to uncover the structural and social forces that constrain agency of Deaf ASL users in their attempts to access healthcare. Survey methodology is used to obtain both qualitative and quantitative data from 11 community stakeholder groups. Results show that Deaf …

The Presence Of Coping Education In American Sign Language Interpreter Education Programs As Perceived By Graduates, Anna N. Teitt

Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies and Communication Equity Thesis or Action Research Project

This study investigated whether coping strategies were part of the curriculum in various American Sign Language interpreter education programs (ASL IEPs). The researcher conducted a national survey and ten interviews with participants to assess their current coping strategies, where they had been learned, and whether their IEPs had prepared them to cope with the possibility of secondary traumatic stress (STS) and vicarious trauma (VT). The researcher utilized literature regarding risks of STS and VT in several settings for interpreters to position the gap of literature regarding coping strategies interpreters use. This study focused on graduates of IEPs because IEPs provide …