A Data-based Interpreting Strategies Research

Interpreting is a highly complicated information-processing activity which contains comprehension of source language information, processing of input information and production of target language information. In this process, there are lots of difficulties hindering interpreters' smooth accomplishment of interpreting tasks. Therefore, interpreters have to make use of certain interpreting strategies to promote the smooth accomplishment of interpreting tasks. However, nowadays there are relatively fewer studies on interpreting strategies' practical application in the interpreting process, not to mention the empirical research on interpreting learners' application of interpreting strategies in interpreting contests.With the combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis methods, this paper studies interpreting strategies' application by the interpreting contestants in Fifth Cross-Strait Interpreting Contest of Hubei Province and Huazhong District. Firstly, the thesis takes advantage of questionnaires to analyze the forty-eight interpreting contestants' cognition on the frequency of interpreting strategies. Afterward the author records the interpreting performance in the conference interpreting section of sixteen contestants from Hubei Province and eighteen contestants from Huazhong District, transforms them into a transcript and analyzes the practical application types and frequency of interpreting strategies. Furthermore, when analyzing the transcript, the author also compares the performance of high-score contestants and that of low-score contestants in order to find out the difference in the application of interpreting strategies between high-score contestants and low-score contestants and the relationship between the application of interpreting strategies and the scores of contestants.The results of questionnaires and interpreting recording transcript show that the interpreting contestants universally admit the significance of interpreting strategies. As a matter of fact, they consciously make use of corresponding strategies to help smoothly finish their interpreting tasks in practical interpreting contests. To be specific, the analyzing result of questionnaires indicates that the interpreting strategies with a relatively higher frequency are note-taking, directed attention, advanced preparation, approximation, paraphrasing and fillers. Moreover, in the analysis of interpreting transcript, the practical used interpreting strategies with a higher frequency include fillers, self-repair and approximation. Moreover, the high-score contestants are apt to make use of approximation and paraphrasing whose use is positively related to the scores of contestants. On the contrary, low-score contestants are inclined to use generalization, compression, self-repair and avoidance which are negatively related to the contestants' scores.This research provides interpreting learners with some guidance and reference in consciously and selectively using corresponding interpreting strategies to enhance their interpreting capacity during their interpreting learning process.