ERIC Number: EJ1438387
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0143-4632
EISSN: EISSN-1747-7557
Available Date: N/A
To Act or Not to Act: Interpreters' Dilemmas and Choices in Aged Care Assessments of Elderly Migrants
Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, v45 n7 p2412-2426 2024
This article examines interpreters' dilemmas and choices in the case of home-based aged care assessments of elderly migrants in Australia. Based on one-on-one interviews with professional interpreters, it specifically explores tensions between power, norms and interpreters' own positionings on intercultural communication problems. Data analysis identifies two overarching themes. First, the institutional regulations on engaging in 'small chats' with clients are reported to upset many elderly migrants, who are socially isolated due to limited English proficiency and are keen to talk to interpreters in their mother tongue. Interpreters' professionalism tends to be seen as a form of rejection by lonely elderly migrants, which in turn affects mutual rapport-building and communication success. Second, the combined effects of vulnerability and culturally-embedded fears of nursing homes are found to impact the level of honesty among older people during assessments. The problem tends to be exacerbated by the reported monocultural milieu of aged care assessments, posing dilemmas for interpreters, who are expected to remain neutral. The article concludes by highlighting interpreter-mediated encounters as three-way exchanges, and calls for a rethinking of the boundaries of interpreting and interpreters with specific attention to power differentials.
Descriptors: Older Adults, Native Language, Second Language Learning, Translation, Immigrants, Cultural Background, Psychological Patterns, Foreign Countries, Power Structure, Intercultural Communication, Professional Personnel, English (Second Language), Professionalism, Nursing Homes, Ethics, Cognitive Ability, Evaluation Methods, Social Isolation, Cultural Differences, Psychological Testing
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A