The Human Factor in Interpreting: Vulnerability and Fragility of Interpreters in Action

Abstract

In the practice of interpreting, as in other professions, interpreters are frequently subject to stressful conditions caused by numerous factors, as well as being exposed to situations that may often lead to moments of tension, stress, ethical dilemmas and thus have some kind of psycho-emotional impact. Stress, for example, is one of the most common situations, caused by conditions that are somehow inherent in the profession: constant flow of information, time pressure, high level of concentration, cognitive exhaustion or fatigue. The circumstances described above are well known to interpreting students and professionals, but curricula do not usually include guidelines for dealing with contexts and situations in which there is a high probability of suffering some kind of psychological and emotional impact; this means that future interpreters, lacking a minimum of preparation in this respect, may be vulnerable and show signs of emotional or psychological fragility in their professional practice. This paper focuses on describing, through experiential examples, the main contexts and situations in which interpreters may be affected psychologically and emotionally or suffer from forms of pathology akin to vicarious trauma (psychological suffering as a result of traumatic situations they have to interpret) or burnout syndrome (physical and psychological exhaustion). In the concluding section, the reasons why it is considered essential to integrate skills into interpreting careers that will enable future interpreters to deal with these issues will be presented. For this purpose, relevant research and its results are a key element to delve into the matter and design a training program capable of addressing the need to avoid or mitigate vulnerability and fragility in interpreters subjected to conditions of stress or psycho-emotional impact.