Cover not available
Article published In:
Interpreting
Vol. 20:2 (2018) ► pp.204–231

Conference interpreting and knowledge acquisition

How professional interpreters tackle unfamiliar topics

| National Taiwan University
| National Taiwan University
| National Taiwan University

This paper describes knowledge acquisition of professional conference interpreters in Taiwan when dealing with unfamiliar topics: the focus is on how the required knowledge is developed before, during and after a conference. We interviewed 10 Chinese-English interpreters, to find out about their preparation for such conferences and their approach to developing domain-specific knowledge. We first collected each interpreter’s five latest conference programs and used these to analyze the knowledge domains covered. We then based each interview on one conference agenda, considered representative by the interpreter, to examine the knowledge acquisition process from pre- to post-conference. The results show strategic preparation of unfamiliar topics: to facilitate comprehension and reformulation, interpreters make good use of conference documents and compile glossaries in which they organize the concepts and terminology specific to the conference. As they assimilate the language usage of the presenters and other participants during the conference, they use their analytical skills to manage any difficulties. Keeping in mind the aims of the event (e.g., commercial, scientific), as well as the profiles of the speakers and target audience, helps to optimize availability of relevant knowledge at short notice and continue updating it during the assignment.

Keywords: conference interpreting, conference preparation, knowledge acquisition
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Previous studies
  • 3.Rationale and research questions
  • 4.The study
    • 4.1Participants
    • 4.2Data collection
  • 5.Findings
    • 5.1Topics and genres of interpreted events
    • 5.2Interpreters’ knowledge acquisition processes
      • 5.2.1Pre-conference
        • 5.2.1.1Contextualization
        • 5.2.1.2Sources of preparation materials
        • 5.2.1.3Linguistic preparation
        • 5.2.1.4Help from teammates and clients
        • 5.2.1.5Differences between CI and SI
      • 5.2.2During the conference
        • 5.2.2.1Last-minute preparation
        • 5.2.2.2In-conference linguistic and extralinguistic knowledge acquisition
        • 5.2.2.3Coping tactics for knowledge gap
      • 5.2.3Post-conference
        • 5.2.3.1Disposal of conference materials and glossaries
        • 5.2.3.2Accumulation of knowledge
        • 5.2.3.3Refinement of knowledge acquisition strategies
  • 6.Conclusion
  • References
Published online: 24 September 2018
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/intp.00010.cha
References
AIIC
(1999) Practical guide for professional conference interpreters. [URL] (accessed 17 September 2016).
Albl-Mikasa, M.
(2012) The importance of being not too earnest: A process- and experience-based model of interpreter competence. In B. Ahrens, M. Albl-Mikasa & C. Sasse (Eds.), Dolmetschqualität in Praxis, Lehre und Forschung. Festschrift für Sylvia Kalina. Tübingen: Narr, 59–92.Google Scholar
Anderson, L.
(1994) Simultaneous interpretation: Contextual and translation aspects. In S. Lambert & B. Moser-Mercer (Eds.), Bridging the gap: Empirical research in simultaneous interpretation. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 101–120. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chan, P. -Y.
(2015) The student interpreter’s glossary: A survey. Master’s thesis, National Taiwan Normal University.Google Scholar
Díaz Galaz, S.
(2011) The effect of previous preparation in simultaneous interpreting: Preliminary results. Across Languages and Cultures 12 (2), 173–191. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Díaz Galaz, S., Padilla, P. & Bajo, M. T.
(2015) The role of advance preparation in simultaneous interpreting: A comparison of professional interpreters and interpreting students. Interpreting 17 (1), 1–25. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Donovan, C.
(2001) Interpretation of technical conferences. Conference Interpretation and Translation 3 (1), 7–29.Google Scholar
Gile, D.
(2002) The interpreter’s preparation for technical conferences: Methodological questions in investigating the topic. Conference Interpretation and Translation 4 (2), 7–27.Google Scholar
(2005) Empirical research into the role of knowledge in interpreting: Methodological aspects. In H. V. Dam, J. Engberg & H. Gerzymisch-Arbogast (Eds.), Knowledge systems and translation. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 149–171. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2009) Basic concepts and models for interpreter and translator training (Rev. ed.). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Jiang, H.
(2013) The interpreter’s glossary in simultaneous interpreting: A survey. Interpreting 15 (1), 74–93. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kohn, K. & Kalina, S.
(1996) The strategic dimension of interpreting. Meta 41 (1), 118–138. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lamberger-Felber, H.
(2003) Performance variability among conference interpreters: Examples from a case study. In A. Collados Aís, M. M. Fernández Sánchez & D. Gile (Eds.), La evaluación de la calidad en interpretación, investigación: Actas del I Congreso Internacional sobre Evaluación de la Calidad en Interpretación de Conferencias, Almuñécar 2001 Granada: Comares, 147–168.Google Scholar
Luccarelli, L.
(2006) Conference preparation: What it is and how it could be taught. Conference Interpretation and Translation 8 (1), 3–26.Google Scholar
Moser-Mercer, B., Frauenfelder, U., Casado, B. & Künzli, A.
(2000) Searching to define expertise in interpreting. In B. E. Dimitrova & K. Hyltenstam (Eds.), Language processing and simultaneous interpreting: Interdisciplinary perspectives. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 107–131. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Pöchhacker, F.
(2004) Introducing interpreting studies. London/New York: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Seleskovitch, D.
(1994) Interpreting for international conferences: Problems of language and communication (S. Dailey & E. N. McMillan, Trans.). Washington, DC: Pen and Booth.Google Scholar
Swales, J. M.
(1990) Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Cited by

Cited by 6 other publications

Abdel Latif, Muhammad M. M.
2020. Researching Professional Translator/Interpreter Experiences and Roles. In Translator and Interpreter Education Research [New Frontiers in Translation Studies, ], ► pp. 125 ff. DOI logo
Chen, Hua, Ying Wang & T. Pascal Brown
2021. The effects of topic familiarity on information completeness, fluency, and target language quality of student interpreters in Chinese–English consecutive interpreting. Across Languages and Cultures 22:2 ► pp. 176 ff. DOI logo
Corpas Pastor, Gloria
2022. Interpreting Tomorrow? How to Build a Computer-Assisted Glossary of Phraseological Units in (Almost) No Time. In Computational and Corpus-Based Phraseology [Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 13528], ► pp. 62 ff. DOI logo
Jones, Alun
2021. “The Interpretation Zone”: European Geopolitics and the Interpretive Body. Annals of the American Association of Geographers 111:4 ► pp. 1219 ff. DOI logo
Mellinger, Christopher D.
2023. Chapter 8. Embedding, extending, and distributing interpreter cognition with technology. In Interpreting Technologies – Current and Future Trends [IVITRA Research in Linguistics and Literature, 37], ► pp. 195 ff. DOI logo
Nicodemus, Brenda, Minhua Liu & Sandra McClure
2022. The reading habits of professional signed and spoken language interpreters. Translation and Interpreting Studies 17:2 ► pp. 287 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 31 march 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.