Research Article

Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey

Number: 19 June 21, 2020
  • Aslı Polat Ulaş *
TR EN

Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey

Abstract

Public service interpreting is a type of interpreting that eliminates the language barrier between migrants/refugees and officials of the host country's public institutions. In many countries, it is still an activity performed by friends, family members or neighbors of the minority-language speaker, namely untrained individuals (Wadensjö, 2009), and in many other countries, it is an activity, for which training might be optional, and the remuneration is rather lower than that for conference interpreting (Hale, 2015:66), which are the major factors hindering the professionalization. Likewise, in Turkey, especially in the face of the increased refugee population in recent years, mostly individuals who speak the relevant languages but who have not received interpreter training provide interpreting services in institutions. In this regard, this study addresses the public service interpreters working at the units of the Association for Solidarity with Asylum Seekers and Migrants (SGDD-ASAM), one of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Turkey that provides a wide-scale service to refugees. More specifically, the practitioners' perceptions regarding their interpreting experiences will be discussed based on the data collected through semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. Moreover, the data from the institutional document and the interviews conducted with the institution officials will be used as supplementary data to the discussion. Based on the available data, it can be said the practitioners’ perceptions regarding their interpreting experiences are generally centered around the issues of exercise of restricted agency and awareness of institutional and professional ethics, which also manifest their alignment with the institutional identity and role projected for them.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Linguistics

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Aslı Polat Ulaş * This is me
0000-0002-7815-3686
Türkiye

Publication Date

June 21, 2020

Submission Date

April 27, 2020

Acceptance Date

June 20, 2020

Published in Issue

Year 2020 Number: 19

APA
Polat Ulaş, A. (2020). Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE Dil Ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi, 19, 661-700. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.752733
AMA
1.Polat Ulaş A. Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE. 2020;(19):661-700. doi:10.29000/rumelide.752733
Chicago
Polat Ulaş, Aslı. 2020. “Becoming an Interpreter through Experience: The Perceptions of the Non-Professional Public Service Interpreters in Turkey”. RumeliDE Dil Ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi, nos. 19: 661-700. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.752733.
EndNote
Polat Ulaş A (June 1, 2020) Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE Dil ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi 19 661–700.
IEEE
[1]A. Polat Ulaş, “Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey”, RumeliDE, no. 19, pp. 661–700, June 2020, doi: 10.29000/rumelide.752733.
ISNAD
Polat Ulaş, Aslı. “Becoming an Interpreter through Experience: The Perceptions of the Non-Professional Public Service Interpreters in Turkey”. RumeliDE Dil ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi. 19 (June 1, 2020): 661-700. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.752733.
JAMA
1.Polat Ulaş A. Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE. 2020;:661–700.
MLA
Polat Ulaş, Aslı. “Becoming an Interpreter through Experience: The Perceptions of the Non-Professional Public Service Interpreters in Turkey”. RumeliDE Dil Ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi, no. 19, June 2020, pp. 661-00, doi:10.29000/rumelide.752733.
Vancouver
1.Aslı Polat Ulaş. Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE. 2020 Jun. 1;(19):661-700. doi:10.29000/rumelide.752733

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