A hermeneutic approach to community interpreting: Healthcare interpreter and subjectivity

The aim of this study is to demonstrate how interpreters in healthcare institutions, one of the fields of application of community interpreting, experience subjectivity before, during and after the process of interpretation. According to related literature, objectivity and impartiality are internationally accepted qualities of a healthcare interpreter. To test this understanding in Turkey, the reflections of the subjectivity of interpreters on their rendering and professional experience were examined as manifested in their own accounts. It was also questioned whether interpreters are impartial and objective conveyors or prejudiced subjects that reflect their own perceptions, views and decisions. Hermeneutic approach forms the methodological basis of the study. In-depth interviews constitute one of the three data sources of this study, where accounts of 'subjects' were analyzed in order to understand the expressions of Erlebnis, also known as the 'experience of life'. Computer aided thematic analysis was conducted on the interviews administered to a group of 27 participants. Hermeneutic circle and the fusion of horizons were used both in the thematic analysis and in the discussion of the results. The scope of the duties and responsibilities of the interpreters participating in this research, their professional backgrounds, the decision-making processes and the concepts related to the affect were investigated. Research diaries form the second data source. As a means of tracing the subjectivity of the researcher, these diaries reveal the landmarks on the path that leads to the conclusion drawn by the researcher, who is also a subject. The last component of data triangulation is the document analysis conducted on national and international codes of ethics. Composed of codes addressing all translators and interpreters or only community interpreters, two different data sets include 32 codes of ethics in total, from 18 different countries and 3 international associations. In conclusion, it is understood that the healthcare interpreters participating in this study may follow very different approaches to the principles referred to in the international codes of professional ethics and that subjective judgements and decisions direct and shape their professional experience to a great extent. The document analysis revealed that the qualities attributed to the principle of impartiality may vary by the context of the countries in question. Finally, it is considered vitally important for the efforts towards meeting the need for a reference document of professional ethics for healthcare interpreters in Turkey to be informed by the experience of the interpreters in the field, so that a document that addresses and duly relates to the actual conditions of the profession and that finds its place in the field may be created.