Man lär så länge man lever sägs det, och även lärare på utbildningen för teckenspråkstolkar på Stockholms universitet säger att avslutad utbildning inte är likställt med att vara färdiglärd. För att undersöka om det går att se fortsatt utveckling har jag i denna uppsats jämfört tre studenter, från kandidatprogrammet i teckenspråk och tolkning, som går sista terminen och tre erfarna tolkar, som i snitt har en erfarenhet på 12,5 år, i deras produktion av konstruerat agerande (CA) och konstruerad dialog (CD) när de tolkar en barnbok. Resultatet visar att det inte fanns någon större skillnad mellan grupperna när det kommer till produktion av CA och CD, men en generalisering går inte att göra då resultatet inte går att applicera på hela yrkeskåren eftersom deltagargrupperna är så pass små. Det gick därmed inte att med hjälp av mitt resultat att dra några slutsatser kring hur en fortsatt utveckling sker efter att man har avslutat sin utbildning och har erfarenhet av att jobba som tolk. / They say that learning never stops. The teachers at the sign language interpreter program at Stockholm university say that having completed the program is not the same as being fully learned. In this study I have compared three students, from the bachelor’s program in sign language and interpreting, who are attending the last semester, as well as three experienced interpreters, with an average of 12,5 years of experience, in their production of constructed action (CA) and constructed dialogue (CD) when interpreting a children’s book. The results show no difference between the groups when looking at the production of CA and CD. Thus, since the participant groups are small, a generalization that applies to the whole field of interpreters cannot be made. This also resulted in that I could not make any assumptions about how any progress is made after one has finished their education and has some experience working as an interpreter.

This thesis comprises four separate studies of the same material: a ten-minute Swedish Sign Language monologue. Study I describes the form, meaning, and use of the sign INDEX-c, a pointing toward the chest traditionally described as a first person pronoun. It is argued that INDEX-c is used not only with specific reference to the signer or a quoted signer, but also with non-specific reference. Contrary to what has been reported, INDEX-c is used not only for constructed dialogue, but also in constructed action. The analysis reveals two separate forms, as well, labeled as reduced INDEX-c and distinct INDEX-c, respectively. Study II describes the activities of the non-dominant hand when it is not part of a two-handed sign. A continuum is suggested, moving from different rest positions that do not contribute to the discourse content, via mirroring of the dominant hand, for example, to instances where the non-dominant hand produces signs of its own while the dominant hand remains inactive, i.e. dominance reversal. Several of the activities of the non-dominant hand, including the four types of buoys that are described, help structure the discourse by indicating the current topic. Study III uses Mental Space Theory and Conceptual Blending Theory to describe the use of signing space for reference. A correlation is shown between discourse content and the area in the signing space toward which signs are meaningfully directed, and also between these directions and which types of Real Space blends the signer mainly uses: token blends or surrogate blends. Finally Study IV looks in more detail at three segments of the discourse and their Real Space blend structure. An initial analysis of eight interpretations into spoken Swedish is also conducted, focusing on whether preselected content units (discourse entities and relations) are identified. A large number of Real Space blends and blended entities are argued to result in less successful renditions measured in terms of preselected content units. / För att köpa boken skicka en beställning till exp@ling.su.se/ To order the book send an e-mail to exp@ling.su.se