Jemina Napier | Heriot-Watt University (original) (raw)

Papers by Jemina Napier

This paper investigates perceptions of teachers and students on the qualities of effective transl... more This paper investigates perceptions of teachers and students on the qualities of effective translation teachers in universities using survey research. These qualities include the teachers' personal traits, the roles they play in and out of the classroom, the pedagogies used in classroom teaching and the feedback given to students. Surveys were designed using Survey Monkey and participants were invited to complete and submit the surveys online. 94 students and 22 teachers from several Australian and New Zealand universities participated in the research. The results show that translation teacher effectiveness includes but not limited to the following factors: effectiveness of classroom teaching, a level of understanding of translation theory and skills, a way of demonstrating these skills, pedagogies to motivate students for their independent learning, a personality which influences students on their learning process and road to professionalism, and ongoing help for students. ðə dʒərnəl əv laeŋgwədʒ titʃɪŋ aend lərnɪŋ J L T L dɛdəketəd tu haj kwɑləti risərtʃ ɪn əplayd lɪŋgwɪstɪks Newmark (1991) and made contributions to the translation research with the focus on translator competence, translation pedagogy and translation teaching methods, but little research has been done to discover what qualities are required for effective translation teachers and what makes effective translation teaching. It would then be valuable to explore the perception of teachers and students at universities on the qualities of an effective translation teacher, and make recommendations for the application of these findings in teacher training and recruitment, as other teachers can learn from them and apply appropriate and effective techniques to conduct their own teaching in their particular contexts in order to become more effective. Single case studies cannot be generalised to all, but comparing a range of effective teaching experiences will provide the opportunity for other teachers to develop the qualities they, or their students, regard as important to conduct translation teaching both in and out of the classroom. As a result of this study, not only can our translation teachers discover the potential factors that affect translation teaching, but we also may be able to consider our own teaching contexts and student needs and develop the essential qualities needed to cope with different teaching requirements and different students.

This article describes the results of an international research collaboration. The aim of the stu... more This article describes the results of an international research collaboration. The aim of the study was to identify the dispositional traits of interpreters that may be predictive of occupational performance. Empirically, general cognitive ability has been shown to be highly predictive of job performance across most occupations and is considerably more predictive than non-cognitive factors. The cognitive complexity of the task of interpreting is irrefutable, and it is likely there is a strong link between an interpreter's level of competence and his or her general cognitive ability across a number of important cognitive domains. The personalityperformance link is more ambiguous in an organisational context however, although intuitively dispositional traits are likely to play a role in interpreter education and training, and in interpreting practice. Drawing on literature from organisational psychology, personality psychology, interpreting and translation, and applied linguistics, an online survey methodology was developed to explore interpreter disposition and competence. The questionnaire incorporated reliable and valid tests of personality constructs including 'The Big Five' (openness to experience; conscientiousness; extraversion; agreeableness; and neuroticism), as well as constructs of perfectionism and self-esteem. The survey received 2193 responses from interpreters residing in 38 different countries, and is the largest international study of sign language interpreter personality ever undertaken. The results reveal clear patterns in regard to personality factors that predict interpreter performance. Based on the data collected in this global study, and the growing body of scholarly work in this area, the personality factors that appear to have predictive value for interpreters will be outlined, addressing possible implications for both pedagogy and practice in the profession.

With an increasing migrant population worldwide requiring community interpreting services, the ro... more With an increasing migrant population worldwide requiring community interpreting services, the role of the community interpreter has been a critical focus in interpreting studies research. As

This study investigated the effects of hearing status and age of signed language acquisition on s... more This study investigated the effects of hearing status and age of signed language acquisition on signed language working memory capacity. Professional Auslan (Australian sign language)/English interpreters (hearing native signers and hearing nonnative signers) and deaf Auslan signers (deaf native signers and deaf nonnative signers) completed an Auslan working memory (WM) span task. The results revealed that the hearing signers (i.e., the professional interpreters) significantly outperformed the deaf signers on the Auslan WM span task. However, the results showed no significant differences between the native signers and the nonnative signers in their Auslan working memory capacity. Furthermore, there was no significant interaction between hearing status and age of signed language acquisition. Additionally, the study found no significant differences between the deaf native signers (adults) and the deaf nonnative signers (adults) in their Auslan working memory capacity. The findings are discussed in relation to the participants' memory strategies and their early language experience. The findings present challenges for WM theories.

Until recently no linguistic research had been carried out on Australian Sign Language (Auslan) w... more Until recently no linguistic research had been carried out on Australian Sign Language (Auslan) with regard to its use in healthcare settings, although anecdotal information suggests that the health lexicon of Auslan is strikingly under-developed. This paper describes a study that examined health terminology from the perspective of deaf people. Based on a thematic analysis of focus group data, the paper outlines strategies that deaf Australians report to use in communicating about health concepts that do not have established signs in Auslan. Participants described a variety of communicative strategies -including the use of fingerspelling, depiction and explanations -that they employ in order to circumnavigate lexical gaps when talking about health. The study provides a crucial starting point for a discussion of the implications of lexical gaps in Auslan and highlights issues of particular relevance for interpreters who take responsibility for brokering health terms and mediating health communication.

Examples are given to compare how participants view the signed language interpreting profession, ... more Examples are given to compare how participants view the signed language interpreting profession, and to discuss the expectations of all parties of signed language interpreter-mediated encounters. The focus of analysis is on key themes that were evident from the most frequently used words/signs. The findings provide a clearer understanding of the relationship between consumers and interpreters, and attitudes towards signed language interpreters and interpreting in Australia.

This paper proposes that variance in interpreter performance is dependent on factors of both gene... more This paper proposes that variance in interpreter performance is dependent on factors of both general cognitive ability and personality. Whilst there is no doubt of the interplay between individual personality traits and job performance across many occupations, the greatest interest lies in determining which traits play the most important role; and to what extent these variables impact on learning and achievement. The paper reports on a study of 110 accredited signed language interpreters in Australia. Psychological constructs of self-efficacy, goal orientation and negative affectivity were measured, as were interpreter ratings of self-perceived competence as practitioners. The most significant finding revealed the dimension of emotional stability (represented on the negative end of the continuum by traits of anxiety and neuroticism, and measured in this study by the negative affectivity scale) as a predictor of interpreter's self-perceived competence. Based on these findings, recommendations for admission testing and interpreter education curricula are discussed.

The aim of the project reported here was to investigate whether the use of current technology wit... more The aim of the project reported here was to investigate whether the use of current technology within the New South Wales (Australia) Department of Justice is appropriate for providing video remote signed language interpreting services in court given that video conference facilities make use of fixedangle cameras that cannot be moved, zoomed in or out, or focus on different parts of the courtroom. The study sought answers to questions concerning consumer comfort levels, integrity of interpreting process, and optimum settings for interpreters to provide quality services remotely. Conclusions from the study include the need to carefully consider the technological, linguistic, environmental, and logistical issues before establishing video remote interpreting services.

Discourse & Communication, 2007

Various discourse-based interpreting research has focused on the interactive nature of interpreti... more Various discourse-based interpreting research has focused on the interactive nature of interpreting and determined that the interpreter is in fact a participant within the interaction. established that conversation participants conform to conversational maxims, and abide by the 'cooperative principles' of conversation as appropriate to the context. With respect to interpreting, what are the cooperative principles? How do sign language interpreters and deaf people work together to negotiate meaning in interpretation? This paper presents a case study of an Australian Deaf presenter using Australian Sign Language and two Australian sign language interpreters who demonstrate evidence of cooperation in interpreter-mediated monologic talk. Drawing on a framework of interactional sociolinguistics, data was analyzed to identify the discourse strategies used in order to ensure the smooth and accurate interpretation of an Auslan presentation into spoken English. The analysis focuses on the use of pauses, nods and eye contact as discourse markers in the interpreter-mediated event. It was found that participants used these discourse markers deliberately and strategically for signaling comprehension, marking episodes, clarification and controlling the pace of the presentation. Thus, a cooperative principle of interpreting suggests the establishment of particular cues for communication. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research.

Given that the study of interpreting can be considered as an applied linguistic activity, this pa... more Given that the study of interpreting can be considered as an applied linguistic activity, this paper details a small-scale study which investigated 56 Australian Sign Language (Auslan)/ English interpreters' perceptions of their bilingual status and compared these to their preferences for working into Auslan or English. The impetus for the study came from discussions with interpreter educators, researchers and practitioners in which it was asked 'how bilingual' an interpreter must be in order to interpret effectively. Interpreters are assumed to have a high level of proficiency in both their languages and traditionally interpret into their dominant language. An email survey that questioned interpreters' perceptions about bilingualism in general, their own bilingualism and their preferred language direction was administered to accredited Auslan/ English interpreters in Australia. The results showed that for many of the interpreters, perceived bilingual status and preferred language direction when interpreting contravened established practice, preferring to interpret into their non-dominant language. The findings are discussed in relation to implications for the education and practice of signed and spoken language interpreters worldwide, and highlight the need for further study of the nexus between bilingualism and interpreting.

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 2006

Objective: There are no empirically validated measures of psychopathology that can be easily unde... more Objective: There are no empirically validated measures of psychopathology that can be easily understood by signing deaf children and little reliable data on the prevalence of psychiatric disturbance in this population. The aim was to meet this need by developing an Australian Sign Language (Auslan) version of a widely used measure (the Youth Self-Report; YSR) which could be administered in an interactive CD-ROM format, to assess its reliability, and to compare the prevalence of clinically significant psychopathology in deaf adolescents when using the Auslan questionnaire versus the standard written version. This would also allow examining the validity of written questionnaires in this population. Method: Twenty-nine male and 25 female adolescents with severe or profound hearing loss from public and private schools in the Australian States of Tasmania (n = 11) and New South Wales (n = 43) agreed to participate and completed the written and the interactive Auslan versions of the YSR. Parallel forms were completed by parents (Child Behaviour Checklist) and teachers (Teacher's Report Form). Results: The Auslan version showed comparable reliability to that reported for the standard YSR: internal consistency ( α ) ranging from 0.77 to 0.97 and test-retest agreement (r) from 0.49 to 0.78. The interactive Auslan version yielded a prevalence of clinically significant emotional and behavioural problems in deaf adolescents of 42.6% compared with 21.4% when using the standard English version. Prevalence for the wider Australian adolescent population (18.9%) was similar to that obtained among deaf adolescents when using the standard YSR (21.4%). However, it was higher among deaf adolescents (42.6%) when using the Auslan version (OR = 3.2, 95% CI = 1.83-5.58). According to the Auslan version, the syndromes Withdrawn/Depressed (OR = 6.5, 95% CI = 2.96-14.25), Somatic Complaints (OR = 4.8, 95% CI = 2.53-9.22), Social Problems (OR = 8.3, 95% CI = 4.16-16.47) and Thought Problems (OR = 5.7, 95% CI = 2.50-12.80) were much more prevalent among deaf adolescents than in the wider adolescent population, while Attention Problems (OR = 1.1, 95% CI = 0.39-3.17) and Rule-Breaking Behaviour (OR = 1.5, 95% CI = 0.73-3.17) were not. Conclusions: An interactive Auslan version of the YSR is reliable, better accepted and yields higher rates of disturbance than the standard written questionnaire. Clinicians 666 READING THE SIGNS should be aware that using written instruments to assess psychopathology in deaf adolescents may produce invalid results or may underestimate the level of disturbance, particularly emotional problems.

Language Culture and Curriculum, 2006

This paper explores discourse features of Australian Sign Language (Auslan) and the need for sign... more This paper explores discourse features of Australian Sign Language (Auslan) and the need for sign language interpreting students to acquire an understanding of, and skills in, a range of discourse genres in Auslan in order to effectively carry out the work required in their profession. Discourse features of spoken English are outlined and compared with those of signed languages, and an overview of the curriculum and effective teaching approaches used for exploring discourse with sign language interpreting students at Macquarie University is given. The pedagogical process will be detailed in order to convey how Auslan interpreting students analyse, discuss and experience different discourse genres and relate them to their work as interpreters. By engaging in this process, Auslan interpreters are able to develop the necessary skills to effectively negotiate their way in the Deaf community and better understand its language and culture, and provide deaf people using a minority language with access to the majority language and vice versa.

Educational Action Research, 2005

This article outlines an innovative project conducted at Macquarie University, in order to instig... more This article outlines an innovative project conducted at Macquarie University, in order to instigate a change in the delivery of the Postgraduate Diploma in Auslan/English Interpreting. This is the first reported educational change project focusing on the training of sign language interpreters. The goal of the project was to research and develop a new curriculum, and delivery mode for the program so that it could be offered in external (distance) mode, and therefore made accessible to potential students from all over Australia. Action research was used to guide the process as it provided a framework for evaluation. The project demonstrates that interpreters can be trained effectively using a blended approach to distance education, and that action research can be used as an effective approach to the implementation of educational change in an emerging field.

Australasian Psychiatry, 2005

Objective: The aim of this present paper is to highlight some of the issues faced by therapists a... more Objective: The aim of this present paper is to highlight some of the issues faced by therapists and sign language interpreters when working with deaf patients.Conclusions: Key issues include linguistic, interpreting and role challenges, and potential threats to the therapeutic alliance. Recommendations are made in relation to preparation strategies and training for sign language interpreters and therapists.

American Annals of The Deaf, 2004

HE ARTICLE EXPLORES sign language interpreter training, testing, and accreditation in three major... more HE ARTICLE EXPLORES sign language interpreter training, testing, and accreditation in three major English-speaking countries, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, by providing an overview of the training and assessment of sign language interpreters in each country. The article highlights the reasons these countries can be considered leaders in the profession and compares similarities and differences among them. Key similarities include the provision of university interpreter training, approval for training courses, license "maintenance" systems, and educational interpreting guidelines. Differences are noted in relation to training prerequisites, types and levels of accreditation, administration of the testing system, and accreditation of deaf interpreters. The article concludes with predictions about future developments related to the establishment of the World Association of Sign Language Interpreters and the development of sign language interpreting research as a research discipline.