Towards a tool for the integrated management of the interpreter’s prior preparation: A pilot study

Abstract

The interpreter’s prior preparation for a specialised assignment poses a constant challenge for professionals given the usual time constraints experienced in interpreting. The use of an integral application that optimises the prior preparation process from a dual linguistic and extralinguistic perspective will allow the interpreter to contextualise the topic of the event in an agile and effective manner. In order to define the basis on which this application should be designed, this study, which is part of a larger one focused on analysing the way in which prior preparation and glossary elaboration are approached at different educational and professional levels, aims to respond to three objectives: identifying the nature of the main drawbacks encountered by interpreters when preparing for an assignment; identifying the factors that interpreters recognise as determining in increasing the degree of their preparation; and, finally, identifying the interpreters’ future prospects in terms of prior preparation. To this end, a questionnaire was developed aimed at working professional interpreters, to which 41 subjects have responded so far. The preliminary data collected will allow us to initially define the guidelines that will mark the development of the application that aims to combine the linguistic and extralinguistic knowledge acquired by the interpreter for each new assignment in order to guarantee the most effective contextualisation of the speaker’s words and, consequently, achieve the greatest degree of success.