Interpreter Agency Within the Economy of Language Services: Towards A New Paradigm for Community Interpreters
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Issue Date
2024
Authors
Sasso, Angela
License
Subject
School of communication and culture
Abstract
This study investigates the evolving landscape of community interpreting services in Canada, in the context of increasing demand and expanding diversity of languages. Despite this growth, interpreters face stagnant or declining compensation, market awareness, and professional standards. Community interpreters endure precarious job security, inadequate remuneration, and lack of recognition. This paradoxical situation, where the demand for services rises while the profession remains undervalued, forms the basis of the research. The central question of this study seeks to identify factors contributing to the lack of professional autonomy and self-governance among interpreters, despite the industry's expansion. Utilizing Bourdieu’s theory of social practice, the research explores the interplay between individual actions (agency) and structured social contexts (fields), focusing on the dynamic interaction between a professional's habitus, field structure, and various forms of capital. Grounded in participatory action research (PAR), the study employed semi-structured interviews with 16 actively working interpreters from the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley regions. The findings reveal an occupational field characterized by isolation and lack of coordination among interpreters, allowing other agents to manipulate the field. Despite efforts to influence language service agencies, interpreters face constraints imposed by existing field structures and a lack of standardization. The study concludes that community interpreters face both tangible and symbolic challenges. It emphasizes the need to reconsider organizing structures for community interpreting, rather than adapting community interpreting to fit existing frameworks. This study contributes to the field by exploring the foundational causes that maintain the status quo, advocating for transformative change rooted in realism.
Description
2024