Tidigare forskning kring tolkarbetet visar att tolkyrket har utvecklats och spelar en viktig roll i samhället. Tolkarbetet anses vara en stressframkallande aktivitet. En tolk genomför en kommunikation mellan två partner som inte tillämpar samma språk. Kulturtolk förklarar informationen mer djupgående medan kontakttolken tolkar endast det som sägs utan vidare förklaring. Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur kontakttolkar och kulturtolkar upplever sina arbeten. Fyra kvinnor och fyra män med olika modersmål som arbetade som tolk i Mellansverige intervjuades. Resultatet visade att tolkyrket upplevdes ganska trivsamt trots att det kunde innebära stress, svårigheter och känslomässiga situationer. Stress upplevdes i samband med tidsbrist. Känslomässiga situationer uppstod med förmedling av jobbiga besked. Trivsamhet upplevdes med arbetsmiljö. Individer som var analfabeter samt med skilda dialekter, försvårade tolkningen. Kontakttolkar upplevde vissa begränsningar i sina arbeten, medan kulturtolkar ansåg vara mer flexibla. Med tanke på den ständiga förändringen i omvärlden behövs en kontinuerlig utveckling av tolkarbetet.

Signed language interpreting in South Africa has not received much academic attention, despite the profession having undergone major transformation since the advent of democracy. This study aims to create a better understanding of signed language interpreters’ behaviour in one specific setting in South Africa – post-secondary education. During the researcher’s own practice as an educational interpreter at a post-secondary institution, she experienced role conflict and found little information available to assist her in making professional decisions on which direction to take. This provided the impetus to embark on this research. The study begins by outlining the field of liaison interpreting and educational interpreting, and examining the existing literature regarding the interpreter’s role and norms in interpreting. It then goes on to examine authentic interpreted texts, filmed in actual lectures in post-secondary settings. These texts are analysed with reference to interpreter shifts and deviations from the source text, with particular focus on interpreter-generated utterances (additions), borrowing (fingerspelling), omissions (both errors and conscious choice) and various types of collaboration between the interpreter and primary participants. These shifts are examined in more detail to explore whether they indicate any change in the interpreter’s role. Further, interpreters’ own views about their practice, elicited from individual interviews, enable the reader to understand how the interpreters view the role(s) that they fulfil. The research will provide information for interpreter trainers about the roles assumed by SASL interpreters in higher education and provide a platform from which to scaffold future educational interpreter research and training. / Linguistics / M.A. (Linguistics)

The thesis analyzes the interpreter's role in overcoming the cultural barrier between Czechs and Chinese. It focuses on interaction in business settings. The topic has not yet been sufficiently explored, so the first part aims to give a comprehensive overview of relevant literature. First, the role of the interpreter in liaison interpreting is discussed, followed by a systematic comparison of the Czech and Chinese cultures. The overview covers a whole range of cultural differences that can potentially create a barrier in intercultural communication. The second part is a research in interpreter's strategies of overcoming that barrier. The data is acquired via interviews with experienced interpreters. Having analyzed this data, the thesis concludes with taxonomy of factors, which influence how active a role the interpreter plays in the interaction, and of activities that make up the role of an interpreter as intercultural mediator.

Signed language interpreting in South Africa has not received much academic attention, despite the profession having undergone major transformation since the advent of democracy. This study aims to create a better understanding of signed language interpreters’ behaviour in one specific setting in South Africa – post-secondary education. During the researcher’s own practice as an educational interpreter at a post-secondary institution, she experienced role conflict and found little information available to assist her in making professional decisions on which direction to take. This provided the impetus to embark on this research. The study begins by outlining the field of liaison interpreting and educational interpreting, and examining the existing literature regarding the interpreter’s role and norms in interpreting. It then goes on to examine authentic interpreted texts, filmed in actual lectures in post-secondary settings. These texts are analysed with reference to interpreter shifts and deviations from the source text, with particular focus on interpreter-generated utterances (additions), borrowing (fingerspelling), omissions (both errors and conscious choice) and various types of collaboration between the interpreter and primary participants. These shifts are examined in more detail to explore whether they indicate any change in the interpreter’s role. Further, interpreters’ own views about their practice, elicited from individual interviews, enable the reader to understand how the interpreters view the role(s) that they fulfil. The research will provide information for interpreter trainers about the roles assumed by SASL interpreters in higher education and provide a platform from which to scaffold future educational interpreter research and training. / Linguistics and Modern Languages / M.A. (Linguistics)