Quality in simultaneous interpreting with text: A corpus-based case study

Abstract

Simultaneous interpreting (SI) of read speeches using the speaker’s script in the booth (‘SI with text’) is a common practice, particularly in conferences of the United Nations (UN), but little is known about its effect on the quality of interpreters’ output. The present study investigates material from a corpus of authentic English–Chinese SI at a UN conference to establish whether SI with text is beneficial or detrimental to the quality of the interpretation, assessed for accuracy and completeness based on a graded (minor/major/critical) typology of non-correspondence as well as for target-language form and delivery. The corpus-based comparison between the two interpreting modes shows a ‘mixed’ effect of working with the script, with improvements in accuracy for details, such as names, numbers and terms, but a higher risk of critical information loss and a negative impact on fluency. The implications of these findings for interpreter-mediated multilingual communication in the world’s most important forum for international cooperation are discussed.