8. Interpreting for the record
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Franz Pöchhacker
Abstract
This paper addresses a specific aspect of interpreting in Austrian asylum review hearings, i.e., the interpreter’s role as a co-producer of the written record. The interpreter-mediated encounter is viewed as a joint, co-constructed activity, with responsibility for its content, progression and outcome shared by all the interacting parties. This includes the production of the written record of the interview, which is typed by a recording clerk under the supervision of the adjudicator. The discourse-based analysis of fourteen hearings with English-speaking asylum seekers from African countries shows that most interpreters tend to adjust to a striking degree to the needs of record production. This perceived need to interpret “for the record” not only entails an increased cognitive task load but also a significant degree of shared responsibility on the interpreter’s part for the legally relevant manifestation of the interview.
Abstract
This paper addresses a specific aspect of interpreting in Austrian asylum review hearings, i.e., the interpreter’s role as a co-producer of the written record. The interpreter-mediated encounter is viewed as a joint, co-constructed activity, with responsibility for its content, progression and outcome shared by all the interacting parties. This includes the production of the written record of the interview, which is typed by a recording clerk under the supervision of the adjudicator. The discourse-based analysis of fourteen hearings with English-speaking asylum seekers from African countries shows that most interpreters tend to adjust to a striking degree to the needs of record production. This perceived need to interpret “for the record” not only entails an increased cognitive task load but also a significant degree of shared responsibility on the interpreter’s part for the legally relevant manifestation of the interview.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- 1. Introduction. Quality in interpreting 1
-
Part I. A shared responsibility
- 2. Forensic interpreting 13
- 3. The tension between adequacy and acceptability in legal interpreting and translation 37
- 4. A discourse of danger and loss 55
- 5. Is healthcare interpreter policy left in the seventies? 71
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Part II. Investigations and innovations in quality interpreting
- 6. Interpreter ethics versus customary law 85
- 7. A shared responsibility in the administration of justice 99
- 8. Interpreting for the record 119
- 9. Court interpreting in Basque 135
- 10. Community interpreting in Spain 149
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Part III. Pedagogy, ethics and responsibility in interpreting
- 11. Toward more reliable assessment of interpreting performance 171
- 12. Quality in healthcare interpreter training 187
- 13. What can interpreters learn from discourse studies? 201
- 14. Achieving quality in health care interpreting 221
- 15. Research ethics, interpreters and biomedical research 235
- Contributors 251
- Index 253
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- 1. Introduction. Quality in interpreting 1
-
Part I. A shared responsibility
- 2. Forensic interpreting 13
- 3. The tension between adequacy and acceptability in legal interpreting and translation 37
- 4. A discourse of danger and loss 55
- 5. Is healthcare interpreter policy left in the seventies? 71
-
Part II. Investigations and innovations in quality interpreting
- 6. Interpreter ethics versus customary law 85
- 7. A shared responsibility in the administration of justice 99
- 8. Interpreting for the record 119
- 9. Court interpreting in Basque 135
- 10. Community interpreting in Spain 149
-
Part III. Pedagogy, ethics and responsibility in interpreting
- 11. Toward more reliable assessment of interpreting performance 171
- 12. Quality in healthcare interpreter training 187
- 13. What can interpreters learn from discourse studies? 201
- 14. Achieving quality in health care interpreting 221
- 15. Research ethics, interpreters and biomedical research 235
- Contributors 251
- Index 253
