Study 1 - Interpreting international sign: mapping the interpreter’s profile

25 January 2021

In my first study of my PhD I looked at the profile of international sign (IS) conference interpreters worldwide. The study was carried out using a global online survey. The article is published as open access and you can read it here >

Wit, M. de, Crasborn, O. & Napier, J. (2021). Interpreting International Sign: Mapping the Interpreter’s Profile. The Interpreter & Translator Trainer 15(1) (Special issue on Languages of low diffusion and low resources: translation research and training challenges) https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2020.1868172

Abstract

This is the first study mapping the profile of International Sign (IS) conference interpreters worldwide. Rather than a language, IS is a set of variable communicative practices used by deaf persons in international settings. In addition, international institutions and organisations increasingly offer IS interpreting services in order to provide accessibility. As IS is created through contact by deaf persons with various sign languages, IS is continuously changing and evolving. Because IS is not conventionalised, it requires highly specialised skills of the interpreter. At present there are only ad hoc training opportunities for IS conference interpreters and a new accreditation system has recently been put in place. This study presents questionnaire data from current IS interpreting practitioners, which provides insight into their present demographics and qualifications and which, in turn, can be used to inform educators on how to train future IS conference interpreters.

The study was carried out using a global online survey, identifying sign language interpreters who sometimes or regularly work with International Sign. You can see here how the survey was carried out >

More info about my PhD research >

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PhD research by Maya de Wit