La presentación de pruebas y equipos en la interacción de ámbito sanitario interpretada a distancia: un análisis multimodal

A pesar de haberse hecho especialmente evidente en el último año debido a la pandemia de COVID19, la interpretación dialógica a distancia es una práctica que se viene desarrollando desde hace décadas y que encuentra en el sector sanitario uno de los ámbitos de uso más intensivo. La investigación sobre interpretación a distancia ha demostrado claramente en qué medida esta se diferencia de la interpretación presencial, tanto desde el punto de vista de la percepción de los participantes primarios y del intérprete respecto a la interacción, como desde el punto de vista de las estrategias necesarias para le gestión de la comunicación. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar un aspecto específico de la interpretación dialógica de ámbito sanitario por videoconferencia: la introducción y presentación de pruebas médicas y de los equipos con ella relacionados. Para ello, se han seleccionado cuatro distintas secuencias procedentes de dos interacciones enfermera-paciente interpretadas por una intérprete dialógica por videoconferencia, y se han analizado con un enfoque multimodal, con el objetivo de identificar las estrategias comunicativas y los fenómenos característicos de este tipo de interacción. Despite having become especially evident in the last year due to the COVID19 pandemic, distance dialogic interpretation is a practice that has been developing for decades and that finds one of the most intensive use areas in the health sector. Research on distance interpreting has clearly shown to what extent this differs from face-to-face interpreting, both from the point of view of the perception of the primary participants and the interpreter regarding the interaction, and from the point of view of the strategies necessary for communication management. The objective of this study is to analyze a specific aspect of dialogic interpretation in the healthcare field by videoconference: the introduction and presentation of medical tests and related equipment. To do this, four different sequences have been selected from two nurse-patient interactions interpreted by a dialogic interpreter via videoconference, and they have been analyzed with a multimodal approach, with the aim of identifying the communicative strategies and the characteristic phenomena of this type of interaction .Nonostante si sia resa particolarmente evidente nell'ultimo anno a causa della pandemia da COVID19 , l'interpretazione dialogica a distanza che esiste da decenni, e trova nell'ambito sanitario uno dei settori di maggior utilizzo.  La ricerca sull'interpretazione a distanza ha dimostrato chiaramente la misura in cui si differenzia dalla modalità presenziale, sia dal punto di vista della percezione dell'interazione da parte dei partecipanti primari e dell'interprete, sia da quello delle strategie necessarie per la gestione della comunicazione. Lo scopo di questo studio è quello di analizzare un aspetto specifico dell'interpretazione in videoconferenza in ambito sanitario: l'introduzione e la presentazione di esami medici e dei relativi strumenti. A questo scopo, sono state selezionate quattro diverse sequenze di due interazioni infermiera-paziente interpretate da un interprete dialogico in videoconferenza e analizzate con un approccio multimodale, allo scopo di identificare le strategie comunicative e i fenomeni caratteristici di questo tipo di interazione.  Despite having become especially evident in the last year due to the COVID19 pandemic, distance dialogic interpretation is a practice that has been developing for decades and that finds one of the most intensive use areas in the health sector. Research on distance interpreting has clearly shown to what extent this differs from face-to-face interpreting, both from the point of view of the perception of the primary participants and the interpreter regarding the interaction, and from the point of view of the strategies necessary for communication management. The objective of this study is to analyze a specific aspect of dialogic interpretation in the healthcare field by videoconference: the introduction and presentation of medical tests and related equipment. To do this, four different sequences have been selected from two nurse-patient interactions interpreted by a dialogic interpreter via videoconference, and they have been analyzed with a multimodal approach, with the aim of identifying the communicative strategies and the characteristic phenomena of this type of interaction

Figurative language in the interpreting booth: the IMITES (Interpretación de la Metáfora entre ITaliano y ESpañol)Project

Il progetto di dottorato IMITES (Interpretación de la Metáfora entre ITaliano y ESpañol) si pone come obiettivo quello di analizzare l’interpretazione simultanea del linguaggio figurato nelle combinazioni italiano-spagnolo e spagnolo-italiano. Prevede l’analisi di una serie di dati estratti da discorsi pronunciati in italiano e spagnolo in occasione di conferenze tenutesi presso la Commissione europea, e le loro versioni interpretate in spagnolo e italiano rispettivamente. Le espressioni figurate contenute nei discorsi originali sono state allineate e messe a confronto con le versioni fornite dagli interpreti, con il duplice obiettivo di a) capire quali causano maggiori problemi agli interpreti e b) analizzare le strategie di interpretazione applicate da professionisti quali quelli della Direzione Generale Interpretazione (DG SCIC) della Commissione europea nell’interpretare metafore. Il progetto prevede anche la somministrazione di un questionario agli interpreti delle cabine spagnola e italiana del DG SCIC, con l’obiettivo di sondare la loro percezione delle difficoltà che sottendono all’interpretazione del linguaggio figurato, le indicazioni metodologiche ricevute (se del caso) dai loro docenti a tale riguardo e le strategie applicate nella pratica professionale. Infine, l’ultima fase del progetto di ricerca prevede la sperimentazione di una proposta didattica attraverso uno studio caso-controllo svolto su studenti del secondo anno della Laurea Magistrale in Interpretazione delle Scuole Interpreti di Forlì e Trieste. Il gruppo-caso ha ricevuto una formazione specifica sull'interpretazione delle metafore, mentre gruppo-controllo è stato monitorato nella sua evoluzione. L’obiettivo di questa ultima fase di ricerca è quello di valutare, da una parte, l’ “insegnabilità” di strategia per affrontare il linguaggio figurato in interpretazione simultanea, e, dall’altra, l’efficacia dell’unità didattica proposta, sviluppata in base all’analisi svolta su IMITES.The IMITES (Interpretación de la Metáfora entre ITaliano y ESpañol) PhD project analyses the simultaneous interpreting of figurative language in the Italian-Spanish and Spanish-Italian combinations. It involves the analysis of a data set extracted from Italian and Spanish speeches delivered at conferences held at the European Commission, and their interpreted versions in Spanish and Italian respectively. The figurative expressions contained in the original speeches were compared with the interpreters’ versions, with the twofold goal of a) understanding which ones cause most problems to interpreters and b) analysing the interpreting strategies applied by professionals such as those of the Directorate General for Interpretation (SCIC) of the European Commission in interpreting metaphors. The project also includes the administration of a questionnaire to the interpreters of the Spanish and Italian booths of SCIC, with the aim of investigating their perception of the difficulties that lie in interpreting figurative language, the instructions (if any) received from their trainers in this respect and the strategies they apply in their professional practice. Finally, as a practical outcome of the research, the final step is the experimentation of a didactic proposal based on a case-control study carried out on second-year students of the two-year MA in Conference Interpreting of the School of Languages, Literature, Translation and Interpreting of the University of Bologna at Forlì and the Advanced School of Modern Languages for Interpreters and Translators of the University of Trieste. The case-group received a specific training in interpreting metaphors, while the control-group was monitored in its performance. The ultimate goal of the study was to assess the “teachability” of strategies for tackling metaphors during simultaneous interpretation, as well as the effectiveness of the suggested teaching unit, developed from the analysis carried out on IMITES from a pedagogical perspective

Under Pressure? A Study of Heart Rate and Heart-Rate Variability Using SmarTerp

The results of a quasi-experimental, intra-subject study are reported on the effects of the use of SmarTerp on physiological stress levels of twelve second-year students of the MA in Interpreting at the University of Bologna during a simultaneous interpreting task. The study, part of a broader project, explores the rendition of terminological units, proper names, and numbers and its correlation with stress levels, to provide insights into SmarTerp’s practical usefulness in the field. Physiological stress levels were measured through heart rate and heart-rate variability indicators with Empatica E4 wristbands. Participants took part in three data-collection sessions over a month. In sessions 1 and 3 the participants interpreted two speeches, one with SmarTerp and another one without it. Descriptive findings hinted at a potential stress-alleviating effect of interpreting with SmarTerp, especially when interpreting into a second language. However, all inferential statistical results consistently revealed non-significant outcomes. Furthermore, stress levels did not decrease significantly over time when using SmarTerp. While the non-significant reduction in stress may cast doubt on the tool’s efficacy, the complexity and multiple variables influencing stress in interpreting tasks should be factored in. SmarTerp may serve its primary purpose in aiding accurate rendition of terminological units, proper names, and numbers

Approcci e metodologie di ricerca in interpretazione di conferenza

Although interpreting is an ancient communicative practice, presumably born together with the birth of language, the interpreting profession, and in particular conference interpreting, has a rather recent genesis. As a consequence, interpreter education and research on interpreting are also recent. The aim of this contribution is to present an overview of Interpreting Studies and of their different research paradigms and fields, focusing on conference interpreting. Therefore, far from being exhaustive, the present contribution aims at providing a concise account of the wealth of approaches, methodologies and research areas that have been thriving over the years. To this end, the following areas are presented together with some of the most representative publications: cognitive studies, studies on the interpreter\u2019s linguistic output, professional and didactic practices and, finally, interpreting and technology

Under pressure? A study of heart rate and heart-rate variability using SmarTerp

The results of a quasi-experimental, intra-subject study are reported on the effects of the use of SmarTerp on physiological stress levels of twelve second-year students of the MA in Interpreting at the University of Bologna during a simultaneous interpreting task. The study, part of a broader project, explores the rendition of terminological units, proper names, and numbers and its correlation with stress levels, to provide insights into SmarTerp’s practical usefulness in the field. Physiological stress levels were measured through heart rate and heart-rate variability indicators with Empatica E4 wristbands. Participants took part in three data-collection sessions over a month. In sessions 1 and 3 the participants interpreted two speeches, one with SmarTerp and another one without it. Descriptive findings hinted at a potential stress-alleviating effect of interpreting with SmarTerp, especially when interpreting into a second language. However, all inferential statistical results consistently revealed non-significant outcomes. Furthermore, stress levels did not decrease significantly over time when using SmarTerp. While the non-significant reduction in stress may cast doubt on the tool’s efficacy, the complexity and multiple variables influencing stress in interpreting tasks should be factored in. SmarTerp may serve its primary purpose in aiding accurate rendition of terminological units, proper names, and numbers

“Challenged, but in a positive way”. The experience of a multilingual summer school of remote dialogue interpreting

Remote dialogue interpreting, via both telephone and videoconference, is rapidly becoming a standard procedure in the provision of language services for the business, social, health and administrative sectors. This calls for a revision of interpreter training practice in order to include remote interpreting abilities in the curriculum. This was the primary goal of the SHIFT in Orality Erasmus+ project, funded by the European Commission, which aimed at producing a comprehensive and research-based training solution on remote interpreting. The training materials produced within the project were tested for the first time during a multilingual summer school organised in June 2018 within the framework of the project with students from the four SHIFT partner Universities (University of Bologna, Italy; University of Granada, Spain;  Pablo de Olavide University of Seville, Spain; University of Surrey, UK), and trainers from the same universities and the two remote interpreting companies in the partnership, Dualia SL (Spain) and VEASYT Srl (Italy). In this paper, the design of the summer school, the infrastructure used and the technological tools employed will be described, as well as the activities carried out with the students. The main results of the evaluation questionnaires and focus groups will also be presented.

Introduction to the Dossier Issue "Studying human-computer interaction in translation and interpreting : software and applications

Digital tools are changing not only the process of translating and interpreting, but also the industry as a whole, societal perception and research in translation and interpreting. This Tradumàtica Special Issue collects research on some of these topics, highlighting the importance of furthering research on human-computer interaction in translation and interpreting studies.Les eines digitals no només estan canviant la manera de traduir i interpretar, sinó també la indústria en el seu conjunt, la percepció de la societat i la recerca en traducció i interpretació. Aquest número especial de Tradumàtica recull investigacions sobre alguns d'aquests temes, destacant la importància d'aprofundir en la investigació sobre la interacció persona-ordinador en els estudis de traducció i interpretació.Las herramientas digitales no solo están cambiándola manera de traducir e interpretar, sino también la industria en su conjunto, la percepción de la sociedad y la investigación en traducción e interpretación. Este número especial de Tradumàtica recoge investigaciones sobre algunos de estos temas, destacando la importancia de profundizar en la investigación sobre la interacción persona-ordenador en los estudios de traducción e interpretación

Quality assessment and intonation in simultaneous interpreting: evaluation patterns

The main goal of this paper is to analyse the evaluation patterns of various groups of Simultaneous Interpreting (SI) recipients, paying particular attention to interpreter intonation. The research examines whether different recipients share general patterns when evaluating interpreter intonation, regardless of its degree of monotony. It also looks at whether their degree of knowledge of the SI process results in different patterns and, above all, a reduced influence of the interpreter’s monotony on other quality parameters. The research comprises two studies involving different subjects and materials. The results indicate that, starting from the evaluation of interpreter intonation, certain common traits can be identified in the evaluation patterns of SI

Nuevas tecnolog\uedas para la transmisi\uf3n de la interpretaci\uf3n simult\ue1nea: una revoluci\uf3n ya en marcha

The first instances of use of a technological medium (telephone, in that case) for simultaneous interpreting date back to the 20th century (Baigorri-Jal\uf3n 2000). In the past few decades, conference interpreting in simultaneous mode was possible thanks to radio technology or, more frequently and especially for wider audiences and multiple language combinations, the infrared one, which transmits a high-quality audio signal to the audience in the conference hall, through special receivers. With the ever growing globalization, the constant development of ICTs, the incredible speed at which international meetings and events are organized and, last but not least, the constant need of public and private institutions to reduce management times and costs on their events, new alternatives to the infrared technology are being developed, transmitting audio and video signals over the internet. Different platforms on the market offer various possible configurations. Despite the extra stress and fatigue remote interpreting seems to cause to interpreters (Moser-Mercer 2003), this scenario appears to be the present, rather than the future of conference interpreting. For those who approach these new technologies for the first time it can be hard to find their way among a large number of different features and understand their potential. The goal of this paper is to provide an overview of the current scenario of new technologies for the transmission of simultaneous interpreting, describing their possible uses, similarities and differences.Los primeros casos de utilizaci\uf3n de un soporte tecnol\uf3gico (en aquel caso, el telef\uf3nico) para la interpretaci\uf3n simult\ue1nea se remontan al siglo XX (Baigorri-Jal\uf3n 2000). Ya desde hace unas d\ue9cadas, la interpretaci\uf3n de conferencias en modalidad simult\ue1nea es posible gracias a la tecnolog\ueda radiof\uf3nica o, con m\ue1s frecuencia y especialmente para un p\ufablico numeroso y m\ufaltiples combinaciones ling\ufc\uedsticas, la tecnolog\ueda infrarroja, que permite transmitir una se\uf1al audio de alta calidad al p\ufablico en la sala a trav\ue9s de espec\uedficos dispositivos de recepci\uf3n. Con la cada vez mayor globalizaci\uf3n, el desarrollo constante de las tecnolog\uedas de la informaci\uf3n y comunicaci\uf3n, la incre\uedble rapidez con la que se organizan reuniones y eventos internacionales y la constante necesidad de instituciones p\ufablicas y privadas de reducir tiempos y costes de gesti\uf3n de sus eventos comunicativos, se est\ue1n desarrollando nuevas tecnolog\uedas alternativas a la infrarroja, que transmiten se\uf1ales audio y v\ueddeo a trav\ue9s de internet. Las opciones de uso propuestas por las plataformas presentes en el mercado son m\ufaltiples y prev\ue9n varias configuraciones posibles. En este contexto que, a pesar del mayor estr\ue9s y cansancio que parece causar a los int\ue9rpretes (Moser-Mercer 2003), representa cada vez menos el futuro y cada vez m\ue1s el presente de la interpretaci\uf3n de conferencias, resulta dif\uedcil para quien se acerca por primera vez a estas nuevas tecnolog\uedas orientarse entre sus funcionalidades y entender su potencial. El objetivo de este art\uedculo es dibujar un mapa del panorama actual de las nuevas tecnolog\uedas para la interpretaci\uf3n simult\ue1nea, describiendo sus posibilidades de uso, afinidades y diferencias en clave comparativa

Interpretazione telefonica per i servizi turistici

Telephone interpreting (TI) for the service sector is, like dialogue interpreting, an interaction in which the interpreter plays an extremely active role in the conversation. This extremely active role takes on special characteristics, particularly in TI, due to the absence of input and output other than sound. The sharing of a physical space in a FtF interaction, as already highlighted by Wadensjo (1999) among others, contributes to making turn-taking and turn themselves more fluid, with fewer overlappings and interruptions compared to TI. The aim of this chapter is to analyse telephone interaction mediated by interpreters in the field of tourism services, in particular in the Italiani Spanish language pair, in arder to detect recurrent characteristics and good practices. The analysed materials are taken from the SHIFT TI corpus. First of all, the interactions analysed are presented with details on their duration, their characteristics and the interlocutors involved. Second, the interactions are analysed, focusing on recurring phenomena and strategies in particular: management of conversation openings, equipment, references to primary participants, management of call content and interactional problems, management of cognitive resources and conversation closings. Finally, examples of good practices identified during the analyses are presented