Article published In: Interpreting
Vol. 17:1 (2015) ► pp.1–25
The role of advance preparation in simultaneous interpreting
A comparison of professional interpreters and interpreting students
Published online: 30 March 2015
https://doi.org/10.1075/intp.17.1.01dia
https://doi.org/10.1075/intp.17.1.01dia
Current comprehension models recognize the role of prior topic-specific knowledge in the processing of general and specialized discourse (e.g. Gernsbacher 1990; Johnson-Laird 1983; Kintsch 1988). In interpreting, there is widespread consensus that interpreters work better when they prepare in advance. However, research on how preparation affects interpreting has encountered such methodological challenges as high variability and the need for appropriately sensitive measures and tasks (Gile 2005). This article reports an experimental study to assess the effect of advance preparation on simultaneous interpreting of specialized speeches, comparing seven professional interpreters and sixteen interpreting students. All participants did two simultaneous interpretations, into Spanish (their ‘A’ language) from English, of presentations from scientific congresses: one with preparation materials provided half an hour beforehand, the other without preparation. Each source text contained both ‘neutral’ and ‘difficult’ speech segments (the three types of difficulty being terminology, syntactic complexity and lack of redundancy). Dependent variables were accuracy of interpretation and length of ear-voice span (EVS), the rationale being that longer EVS probably reflects processing difficulties. The results show that both groups worked significantly better after advance preparation, this being reflected both in accuracy and in ability to maintain a shorter EVS. Interaction between preparation and type of difficulty was also examined.
References (77)
Abril, M.I. & Ortiz, C. (1998). Formación de intérpretes de conferencias en el ámbito bio-sanitario inglés-español. La experiencia de la Facultad de Traducción e Interpretación de la Universidad de Granada. In L. Felix Fernandez & E. Ortega Arjonilla (Eds.), Traducción e interpretación en el ámbito bio-sanitario. Granada: Comares, 287–297.
Agrifoglio, M. (2004). Sight translation and interpreting: A comparative analysis of constraints and failures. Interpreting 6 (1), 43–67.
AIIC (2004). A practical guide for professional conference interpreters. [URL] (accessed 8 August 2013).
(2009). Code of professional ethics. [URL] (accessed 8 August 2013).
AIIC Training Committee (2006). Advice to students wishing to become conference interpreters. [URL] (accessed 8 August 2013).
Alexander, P., Kulikowich, J. & Schulze, S. (1994). The influence of topic knowledge, domain knowledge and interest on the comprehension of scientific exposition. Learning and Individual Differences 6 (4), 379–397.
Alonso Bacigalupe, L. (1999). Sobre la doble recepción del mensaje y la preparación del texto: Resultados de un estudio experimental en IS. In A. Álvarez Lugrís & A. Fernández Ocampo (Eds.), Anovar/Anosar: Estudios de traducción e interpretación, Vol. II1. Vigo: Servicio de Publicacións, Universidad de Vigo, 11–25.
Anderson, L. (1979). Simultaneous interpretation: Contextual and translation aspects. MA dissertation, Concordia University.
. (1994). Simultaneous interpretation: Contextual and translation aspects. In S. Lambert & B. Moser-Mercer (Eds.), Bridging the gap: Empirical research in simultaneous interpretation. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 101–120.
Baddeley, A. (2000). The episodic buffer: A new component of working memory? Trends in Cognitive Neuroscience 41, 417–423.
Bajo, M.T., Padilla, F. & Padilla, P. (2000). Comprehension processes in simultaneous interpreting. In A. Chesterman, N. Gallardo San Salvador & Y. Gambier (Eds.), Translation in Context. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 127–142.
Bajo, M.T. & Macizo, P. (2009). Schema activation in translation and reading. Psicológica 301, 59–89.
Barik, H.C. (1973). Simultaneous interpretation: Temporal and quantitative data. Language and Speech 16 (3), 237–270.
Bloomfield, A., Wayland, S., Rhoades, E., Blodgett, A., Linck, J. & Ross, S. (2010). What makes listening difficult? Factors affecting second language listening comprehension. (Technical Report TTO 81434 E3.1). College Park, MD: University of Maryland Center for the Advanced Study of Language.
Boersma, P. & Weenink, D. (2014). Praat: Doing phonetics by computer [Computer program]. Version 5.3.77. [URL] (accessed 18 May 2014).
Chi, M., Feltovich, P. & Glaser, R. (1981). Categorization and representation of physics problems by experts and novices. Cognitive Science 51, 121–152.
Chiesi, H.L., Spilich, G.J. & Voss, J.F. (1979). Acquisition of domain-related information in relation to high and low domain knowledge. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior 18 (3), 257–273.
Chincotta, D. & Underwood, G. (1998). Simultaneous interpreters and the effect of concurrent articulation on immediate memory. Interpreting 3 (1), 1–20.
Christoffels, I. & de Groot, A.M.B. (2005). Simultaneous interpreting: A cognitive perspective. In J. Kroll & A.M.B. de Groot (Eds.), Handbook of bilingualism: Psycholinguistic approaches. New York: Oxford University Press, 454–479.
Christoffels, I., de Groot, A.M.B. & Kroll, J. (2006). Memory and language skills in simultaneous interpreters: The role of expertise and language proficiency. Journal of Memory and Language 541, 324–345.
Daneman, M. & Carpenter, P.A. (1980). Individual differences in working memory and reading. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior 191, 455–466
de Groot, A.M.B. (2011). Language and cognition in bilinguals and multilinguals: An introduction. New York: Psychology Press.
Díaz-Galaz, S. (2011). The effect of previous preparation in simultaneous interpreting: Preliminary results. Across Languages and Cultures 12 (2), 173–191.
. (2012). La influencia del conocimiento previo en la interpretación simultánea de discursos especializados. PhD dissertation, Universidad de Granada. [URL] (accessed 22 May 2014).
Diriker, E. (2004). De-/Re-contextualizing conference interpreting: Interpreters in the ivory tower? Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Donovan, C. (2001). Interpretation of technical conferences. Conference Interpretation and Translation 31, 7–29.
Ericsson, K.A. (2000/2001). Expertise in interpreting: An expert performance perspective. Interpreting 5 (2), 187–220.
. (2006). The influence of experience and deliberate practice on the development of superior expert performance. In K.A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. Feltovich & R.R. Hoffman (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 685–706.
Ericsson, K.A. & Kintsch, W. (1995). Long-term working memory. Psychological Review 102 (2), 211–245.
Gernsbacher, M. (1990). Language comprehension as structure building. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Gerver, D. (1969/2002). The effects of source language presentation rate on the performance of simultaneous conference interpreters. In F. Pöchhacker & M. Shlesinger (Eds.), The interpreting studies reader. London: Routledge, 52–66.
Gile, D. (2002). The interpreter’s preparation for technical conferences: Methodological questions in investigating the topic. Conference Interpretation and Translation 4 (2), 7–27.
. (2005). Empirical research into the role of knowledge in interpreting: Methodological aspects. In H. Dam, J. Engberg & H. Gerzymisch-Arbogast (Eds.), Knowledge systems and translation. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 149–171.
. (2009). Basic concepts and models for interpreter and translator training (Rev. ed.). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Griffin, J. (1995). The role of context, background knowledge, language skill and translation training and experience in lexical choice in French-English translation. PhD dissertation, Kent State University.
Hild, A. (2011). Effects of linguistic complexity on expert processing during simultaneous interpreting. In C. Alvstad, A. Hild & E. Tiselius (Eds.), Methods and strategies of process research: Integrative approaches in translation studies. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 249–267.
Johnson-Laird, P. (1983). Mental models: Toward a cognitive science of language, inference and consciousness. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Kendeou, P. & van den Broeck, P. (2007). The effects of prior knowledge and text structure on comprehension processes during reading of scientific texts. Memory and Cognition 35 (7), 1567–1577.
Kendeou, P., Rapp, D. & van den Broeck, P. (2003). The influence of prior knowledge on text comprehension and learning from text. Progress in Education 131, 189–209.
Kintsch, W. (1988). The role of knowledge in discourse comprehension: A construction-integration model. Psychological Review 951, 163–182.
Köpke, B. & Nespoulous, J. (2006). Working memory performance in expert and novice interpreters. Interpreting 8 (1), 1–23.
Lamberger-Felber, H. (2001). Text-oriented research into interpreting. Hermes, Journal of Linguistics 261, 39–64.
. (2003). Performance variability among conference interpreters: Examples from a case study. In A. Collados Aís, M. Fernández Sánchez & D. Gile (Eds.), La evaluación de la calidad en interpretación: Investigación. Granada: Comares, 147–168.
Lamberger-Felber, H. & Schneider, J. (2009). Linguistic interference in simultaneous interpreting with text: A case study. In G. Hansen, A. Chesterman & H. Gerzymisch-Arbogast (Eds.), Efforts and models in interpreting and translation research: A tribute to Daniel Gile. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 215–236.
Liu, M. (2001). Expertise in simultaneous interpreting: A working memory analysis. PhD dissertation, University of Texas at Austin.
. (2008). How do experts interpret? Implications from research in interpreting studies and cognitive science. In G. Hansen, A. Chesterman & H. Gerzymisch-Arbogast (Eds.), Efforts and models in interpreting and translation research: A tribute to Daniel Gile. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 159–177.
Liu, M., Schallert, D.L. & Carroll, P.J. (2004). Working memory and expertise in simultaneous interpreting. Interpreting 6 (1), 19–42.
Mackintosh, J. (1985). The Kintsch and van Dijk model of discourse comprehension applied to the interpretation process. Meta 30 (1), 37–43.
Martin, A. (2002). La Interpretación en el ámbito científico-técnico. In A. Alcina & S. Gamero (Eds.), La traducción científico-técnica y la terminología en la sociedad de la información. Castellón: Publicaciones de la Universidad Jaume I1, 107–124.
McNamara, D.S. & O’Reilly, T. (2009). Theories of comprehension skill: Knowledge strategies versus capacity and suppression. In A. Columbus (Ed.), Advances in psychology research. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science Publishers, Inc., 113–136.
McNamara, D.S., de Vega, M. & O’Reilly, T. (2007). Comprehension skill, inference making, and the role of knowledge. In F. Schmalhofer & C.A. Perfetti (Eds.), Higher level language processes in the brain: Inference and comprehension processes. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 233–253.
McNamara, D.S., Louwerse, M.M., Cai, Z. & Graesser, A. (2013). Coh-Metrix version 3.0. [URL] (accessed 23 May 2014).
Means, M.L. & Voss, J.F. (1985). Star Wars: A developmental study of expert and novice knowledge structures. Journal of Memory and Language 24 (6), 746–757.
Miyake, A., Just, M.A. & Carpenter, P.A. (1994). Working memory constraints on the resolution of lexical ambiguity: Maintaining multiple representations in neutral contexts. Journal of Memory and Language 331, 175–202.
Moser, B. (1978). Simultaneous interpretation: A hypothetical model and its practical application. In D. Gerver & H.W. Sinaiko (Eds.), Language interpretation and communication. New York: Plenum Press, 353–367.
Moser-Mercer, B. (1992). Terminology documentation in conference interpretation. Terminologie et Traduction 2 (3), 285–303.
Ozuru, Y., Dempsey, K. & McNamara, D.S. (2009). Prior knowledge, reading skill, and text cohesion in the comprehension of science texts. Learning and Instruction 191, 228–242.
Padilla, F., Bajo, M.T. & Macizo, P. (2005). Articulatory suppression in language interpretation: Working memory capacity, dual tasking and word knowledge. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 8 (3), 207–219.
Padilla, P., Bajo, M.T., Cañas, J.J. & Padilla, F. (1995). Cognitive processes of memory in simultaneous interpretation. In J. Tommola (Ed.), Topics in interpreting research. Turku: University of Turku, Centre for Translation and Interpreting, 61–71.
Seleskovitch, D. (1976). Interpretation: A psychological approach to translating. In R.W. Brislin (Ed.), Translation: Applications and research. New York: Gardner Press, 92–116.
. (1978). Interpreting for international conferences: Problems of language and communication. Washington, DC: Pen and Booth.
Setton, R. (1999). Simultaneous interpretation: A cognitive-pragmatic analysis. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Shlesinger, M. (2003). Effects of presentation rate on working memory in simultaneous interpreting. The Interpreters’ Newsletter 121, 37–49.
Shreve, G., Lacruz, I. & Angelone, E. (2010). Cognitive effort, syntactic disruption and visual interference in a sight translation task. In G. Shreve & E. Angelone (Eds.), Translation and cognition. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 63–84.
Signorelli, T., Haarman, H. & Obler, L. (2012). Working memory in simultaneous interpreters: Effects of task and age. International Journal of Bilingualism 16 (2), 198–212.
Sklar, P. (2008). “The genetics of schizophrenia and bipolar disorders”. NIH Neuroscience Seminar Series, Washington, DC, March 17th, 2008. Lecture, webcast. [URL] (accessed 2 May 2014).
Sunnari, M. (1995). Processing strategies in simultaneous interpreting: “Saying it all” vs. synthesis. In J. Tommola (Ed.), Topics in interpreting research. Turku: University of Turku, Centre for Translation and Interpreting, 109–119.
Ramachandran, V. (2003). “Synapses and the self”. Reith lectures: The emerging mind series, London, April 9th, 2003. Lecture, webcast. [URL] (accessed 2 May 2014).
Timarová, S., Dragsted, B. & Hansen, I.G. (2011). Time lag in translation and interpreting: A methodological exploration. In C. Alvstad, A. Hild & E. Tiselius (Eds.), Methods and strategies in process research: Integrative approaches in translation studies. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 121–146.
Tiselius, E. (2013). Experience and expertise in conference interpreting: An investigation of Swedish conference interpreters. PhD dissertation, University of Bergen.
Tiselius, E. & Jenset, G. (2011). Process and product in simultaneous interpreting: What they tell us about experience and expertise. In C. Alvstad, A. Hild & E. Tiselius (Eds.), Methods and strategies of process research: Integrative approaches in translation studies. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 269–300.
Van Dijk, T.A. & Kintsch, W. (1983). Strategies of discourse comprehension. New York: Academic Press.
Cited by (54)
Cited by 54 other publications
Woumans, Evy
Ahrens, Barbara & Przemysław Janikowski
2025. Speech recording. In Research Methods in Cognitive Translation and Interpreting Studies [Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, 10], ► pp. 183 ff.
Gardiner-Walsh, Stephanie
Gardiner-Walsh, Stephanie
Janikowski, Przemysław & Agnieszka Chmiel
2025. Ear–voice span in simultaneous interpreting. Interpreting. International Journal of Research and Practice in Interpreting 27:1 ► pp. 28 ff.
Kalata-Zawłocka, Aleksandra
Mlundi, Simon
Zhuang, Yajin, Liwen Chen & Wei Lun Wong
Guo, Meng & Lili Han
2024. From manual to machine. Interpreting. International Journal of Research and Practice in Interpreting 26:1 ► pp. 24 ff.
Moneus, Ahmed Mohammed, Fatima Abdullah Yahya Al-Inbari & Baleigh Qassim Al-Wasy
Morrison, Louisa, Zoe Given‐Wilson & Amina Memon
Sheng, Dandan & Mary Diane Clark
Su, Wenchao, Defeng Li & Jing Ning
Wang, Huan, Zhonggen Yu & Xiaohui Wang
Gieshoff, Anne Catherine & Andrea Hunziker Heeb
Mellinger, Christopher D.
2023. Embedding, extending, and distributing interpreter cognition with
technology. In Interpreting Technologies – Current and Future Trends [IVITRA Research in Linguistics and Literature, 37], ► pp. 195 ff.
Chen, Sijia
Chmiel, Agnieszka & Nicoletta Spinolo
2022. Testing the impact of remote interpreting settings on interpreter experience and performance. Translation, Cognition & Behavior 5:2 ► pp. 250 ff.
Gumul, Ewa & Rachel E. Herring
2022. Employing retrospective process tracing in an international exploratory study. Translation, Cognition & Behavior 5:2 ► pp. 221 ff.
Halley, Mark & Linda Connelly
Nicodemus, Brenda, Minhua Liu & Sandra McClure
2022. The reading habits of professional signed and spoken language interpreters. Translation and Interpreting Studies 17:2 ► pp. 287 ff.
Zhu, Xuelian & Vahid Aryadoust
Baekelandt, Annelies & Bart Defrancq
Biernacka, Agnieszka
Chen, Hua, Ying Wang & T. Pascal Brown
Chen, Jinjin
Gieshoff, Anne Catherine
2021. Does it help to see the speaker’s lip movements?. Translation, Cognition & Behavior 4:1 ► pp. 1 ff.
Ho, Chen-En
2021. What does professional experience have to offer?. Translation, Cognition & Behavior 4:1 ► pp. 47 ff.
Shao, Zhangminzi & Mingjiong Chai
Su, Wenchao & Defeng Li
Díaz-Galaz, Stephanie
2020. Listening and comprehension in interpreting. Translation and Interpreting Studies 15:2 ► pp. 304 ff.
Huang, Weibo, Zhenpeng He & Xiaodan Li
Reithofer, Karin
Su, Wenchao
Su, Wenchao
Su, Wenchao
Wang, Weiwei, Yi Xu, Binhua Wang & Lei Mu
Wong, Vicky Wan Kei
2020. Australian court interpreters’ preparation practices. In Interpreting in legal and healthcare settings [Benjamins Translation Library, 151], ► pp. 83 ff.
胡, 敏霞
胡, 敏霞
Chmiel, Agnieszka & Agnieszka Lijewska
2019. Syntactic processing in sight translation by professional and trainee interpreters. Target. International Journal of Translation Studies 31:3 ► pp. 378 ff.
Collard, Camille & Bart Defrancq
Dong, Yanping, Yinghui Li & Nan Zhao
Díaz-Galaz, Stephanie & Alejandro Torres
Han, Chao
Rosendo, Lucía Ruiz & María Cecilia Galván
2019. Coping with speed. Babel. Revue internationale de la traduction / International Journal of Translation 65:1 ► pp. 1 ff.
Abdel Latif, Muhammad M. M.
Chang, Chia-chien, Michelle Min-chia Wu & Tien-chun Gina Kuo
2018. Conference interpreting and knowledge acquisition. Interpreting. International Journal of Research and Practice in Interpreting 20:2 ► pp. 204 ff.
Chmiel, Agnieszka
2018. Meaning and words in the conference interpreter’s
mind. Translation, Cognition & Behavior 1:1 ► pp. 21 ff.
Chmiel, Agnieszka
Chmiel, Agnieszka
2021. Effects of simultaneous interpreting experience and training on anticipation, as measured by word-translation
latencies. Interpreting. International Journal of Research and Practice in Interpreting 23:1 ► pp. 18 ff.
Chmiel, Agnieszka
Xu, Ran
2018. Corpus-based terminological preparation for simultaneous interpreting. Interpreting. International Journal of Research and Practice in Interpreting 20:1 ► pp. 33 ff.
CHMIEL, AGNIESZKA, AGNIESZKA SZARKOWSKA, DANIJEL KORŽINEK, AGNIESZKA LIJEWSKA, ŁUKASZ DUTKA, ŁUKASZ BROCKI & KRZYSZTOF MARASEK
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 12 march 2026. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.
