The Professional Status of Public Service Interpreters. A Comparison with Nurses

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between the professional status of public service interpreters and that which sociologists (Etzioni, 1969; Abbott and Meerabeau, 1998) have attributed to semi-professionals such as nurses. Drawing on the sociological theories of professionalization (Albrecht et al., 2003) and on certain hypotheses suggested by interpreting scholars (Sela-Sheffy and Shlesinger, 2011), the concept of semi-profession will be defined and discussed. Subsequently, the three sociological features shared by the two professions – the lack of specialised training, increasing feminisation and the caring nature of their tasks – will be analysed from a sociological perspective. To test these assumptions, the results of a global questionnaire on the status of public service interpreters – which gathered 888 responses – will be illustrated and commented. The data showed a close relationship between the two professions, which appears to confirm the hypothesis that nurses and public service interpreters are still following the path towards full professionalization.Resumen: Mediante este trabajo pretendemos analizar la relación entre el estatus profesional de los intérpretes de SSPP y el estatus que algunos sociólogos (Etzioni, 1969; Abbott and Meerabeau, 1998) han atribuido a semiprofesionales como las enfermeras. Basándonos en las teorías sobre el proceso de profesionalización (Albrecht et al., 2003) y en las hipótesis sugeridas por algunos estudiosos de interpretación (Sela-Sheffy y Shlesinger, 2011), vamos a definir y discutir el concepto de semiprofesión. Además, las tres principales características sociológicas comunes a las dos profesiones – la falta de educación especializada, la creciente feminización y la actitud solidaria de algunas de las tareas que desarrollan – se analizarán desde una perspectiva sociológica. Para probar estas afirmaciones, los resultados de una encuensta global sobre el estatus profesional de los intérpretes que trabajan en los SSPP – que obtuvo 888 respuestas – serán analizados y comentados. La evidencia ha mostrado una relación cercana entre las dos profesiones, que parece validar la hipótesis de que la interpretación de SSPP y la enfermería todavía están siguendo el camino hacia una mayor profesionalización.

Self-evaluation and professional status as predictors of burnout among nurses in Jordan

“…Despite that, analysis of the modified professional status scale showed that nurses participating in this study frequently try to change negative views toward the nursing profession and they usually feel that patients and their families show respect and appreciation toward them. This result is in agreement with the study of [ 9 ] but in disagreement with some other studies which imply that the nursing profession is taking the right steps to reach a prestigious position [ 33 , 34 ].…”

Because We’re Worth It

“…That said, the discrepancy in status even between translators and conference interpreters is highlighted by Gentile's studies, which found that 56.5% of conference interpreters -the "stars" of the translation profession (Dam and Zethsen 2013) -"relate their status to that of medical doctors and university lecturers" (Gentile 2013, 75). However, public service interpreters were viewed more as a "semiprofession" with a status closer to that of nurses (Gentile 2016). Katan's earlier survey data showed that large numbers of translators and interpreters (50% of all responses) likened their status to teachers and secretaries ahead of lawyers, architects, or doctors (Katan 2009, 199).…”