Factors Influencing The Quality Of Liaison Interpreting And Coping Strategies

In recent years, with rapid social and economic development, advances in science and technology and the deepening of globalization, the number of interpreting activities is on the rise, as is the demand for interpreting services. Interpreting studies has become an independent discipline on its own. As a common form of interpreting, liaison interpreting is widely used in circumstances like business meetings, courts, healthcare settings, etc. Therefore, it is of practical significance to investigate the possible ways to enhance the quality of liaison interpreting. The quality of liaison interpreting can be affected by quite a number of factors, because interpreting is a complicated cognitive activity which involves procedures like information input, processing and output, each of which is closely related to the overall outcome.This paper is a report on the author’s field practice as a liaison interpreter. By analyzing the problems in the task, the author categorizes the influencing factors into three types—the interpreter’s factors, the speaker’s factors and the factors of the speech, of which the interpreter’s factors include linguistic capability, interpreting skills, knowledge and preparedness. Finally, the author puts forward some possible coping strategies—pre-task preparation, enhancement of interpreting skills and flexible adaptation, for it is with sufficient preparation, advanced skills and flexibility that the quality of liaison interpreting can be ensured.