Ethics in the Teaching of Conference Interpreting

Abstract

In marked contrast to research on court and community interpreting, in which ethics has long been addressed, research on conference interpreting has tended to focus on cognitive aspects of the interpreting process. In addition, ethical issues have not usually been addressed explicitly in the classroom. Recently, however, a shift in emphasis in both research and training can be observed, with closer attention being paid to the role of the conference interpreter within a complex communicative situation. Many training programmes now incorporate explicit modules on ethics. Thus, in many ways conference interpreting has seen a shift towards considerations previously more typical of community and court interpreting. This paper examines the reasons for this shift and for persistent attempts to draw distinctions between the various types of interpreting in relation to ethical demands. The consequences of professional self-perception and socialization for the place of ethics in conference interpreter training are also discussed.