deaf-blind interpreting through the lens … interpreting through the lens of the demand ......
TRANSCRIPT
Susanne Morgan Morrow, MA, CI, CT
Tomina Schwenke, PhD, CI, CT???
DEAF-BLIND
INTERPRETING
THROUGH THE
LENS OF THE
DEMAND
CONTROL
SCHEMA
• Demonstrate knowledge and applicability of
the Demand Control Schema to interpreting
scenarios requiring deaf-blind interpreting
strategies.
• Analyze potential demands placed on the
interpreter when working with consumers
with atypical vision.
• Identify controls to assist in any scenario that
is deemed as “deaf-blind interpreting.”
LEARNER OBJECTIVES
Demand Control
Schema & Deaf-Blind
Interpreting
General categories of modifications potentially needed by Deaf-Blind consumers.
Strategies for Deaf-Blind individuals are applicable across settings.
Possible controls within each category.
The link between the Demand-Control Schema in relation to deaf-blindness.
PREVIEW
Points of assessment & how they can be applied.
Understanding
Deaf-Blind
People
Hearing Vision
It is important to understand that the
combination of hearing loss and vision
loss isn’t addition, it’s multiplication:
X
MODES OF COMMUNICATION
• Communication or Picture Cards
• Oral/Spoken Language
• Oral/Printed Communication via Text
• Printed Communication
• Sign Language – Visual
• Sign Language – Tactile
• Combination of Modalities
Age of Onset
Progressive or Stable
Mode(s) of Communi-
cation
Available Supports
Self-Knowledge
Amount & Type of
Training
Affecting factors in
deaf-blind
interpreting are at
the core of the
Demand-Control
Schema.
•A theoretical framework
that allows us to assess
and mitigate the stressors
that are inherent in the
work of sign language
interpreting.
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Dean and Pollard (2001)
•Demands – Part of the job
regardless of who
the interpreter is.
– What is needed:
knowledge,
capability,
characteristics,
traits, working
conditions
•Controls – Interpersonal and
varying.
– Resources and
options (rather than
controlling� the
situation).
– There isn’t a one-to-
one match of
demands and
controls
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Dean and Pollard (2001)
Four Discrete Demands:
1. Environmental
2. Interpersonal
3. Paralinguistic
4. Intrapersonal
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Four Discrete Demands:
1. Environmental
2. Interpersonal
3. Paralinguistic
4. Intrapersonal
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
“Environmental demands are
interpreting challenges or success
requirements that pertain to the
assignment setting (e.g., the need to
understand consumers' occupational
roles and specialized terminology
specific to a given setting or tolerance
of space limitations, odors, extreme
temperatures, or adverse weather)”
Source: Deaf Wellness Center, Univ. of Rochester Medical Center
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Physical surroundings:
•Room temperature
•Chemicals and odors
•Seating arrangements/sight lines
•Lighting quality
•Visual distractions
•Background noise
•Space (people, furniture, equipment)
Source: Dean & Pollard (2001) UNC DO IT Center http://www.unco.edu/doit/home.html
•There are four
environmental factors
that affect the
interpreting process
for individuals with
vision loss.
1. Seating
2. Contrast
3. Lighting
4. Distance
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
Physical Environment
• Being on the same plane with the consumer will assist
in facilitating communication
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
•Adjust your chair up or down
accordingly, if possible
•Request for a different style of
chair
•Sit at an angle to each other
with a comfortable distance
1. SEATING
UNEQUAL PLANES Arm overstretching
Head angled
Neck pressure
1. SEATING
EQUAL PLANES Direct eye contact
Arms at comfortable
lengths
Accurate sign production
• Be sure you and the consumer both have sufficient
support during communication interactions
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
•Use corners of tables
•Use arms of chairs
•Use pillows or rolled jackets behind
backs
•Sit on the edge of the chair to place
weight on legs, not back
1. SEATING
Bad Support Good Support
• The interpreter needs to provide a solid contrast to
her hands/arms to enhance reception of sign language.
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
Prepare wardrobe in advance with
the following considerations:
Wear dark colors for light
pigmentation (not red/pink), light
colors for dark pigmentation (not
white), No open collars or v-neck
shirts, No patterns
Keep a smock or sweater handy
2. CONTRAST
Washed Out
– No Contrast
Hands/Face Clear
– Good Contrast
• Be aware of the backdrop behind you while signing
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
–Request a solid backdrop
–Move to a location in the room
that is less visually cluttered
2. CONTRAST
VISUALLY
CLUTTERED
- Congested
background
- Complex
attire
- No contrast
VISUALLY
CHALLENGING
- Congested
background
- Improved
attire
- Good
clothing
contrast/poor
background
VISUALLY
OPTIMAL
- Clean
background
- Contrasting
attire
- Reduces
eye fatigue
3. LIGHTING
• Additional illumination may be needed in order to
enhance visual access to sign language production
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
–Request that the space be more
illuminated
–Request additional lighting
Lamps that can be angled are often
best
–Move to a different location in the
environment that is better illuminated
Beware of natural lighting – glare and
shadows!
The interpreter needs to be aware of seating & positioning. Never sit in front of windows or bright light.
3. LIGHTING
Contrasting backdrop
Lighting from the front
Lighting should always come from the
front of the interpreter,
over the shoulder of the
consumer.
3. LIGHTING The
interpreter should select a position that allows for a
more contrasting
background.
• Distance between communication
partners may be closer (low vision) or
further away (reduced peripheral fields)
• Distance between the Deaf-Blind person
and communication partners within the
environment may not be accessible
• Materials and things are at a distance
may not be accessible
4. DISTANCE
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
– Pre-conference with the Deaf-Blind person
to determine a comfortable seating distance.
– Pre-conference with the Deaf-Blind person
to discuss what information within the
environment is of interest
– Determine a strategy with your partner and
the Deaf-Blind person as to when this
information will be incorporated into the
interpreting process.
4. DISTANCE
ACTIVITY Environmental
Four Discrete Demands:
1. Environmental
2. Interpersonal
3. Paralinguistic
4. Intrapersonal
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Interpersonal
“Interpersonal demands are interpreting
challenges or success requirements that
pertain to the interaction of the
consumers (e.g., the need to understand
and mediate cultural differences, power
differences and dynamics, differences in
fund of information (Pollard, 1998), or
the unique perceptions, preconceptions,
and interactional goals of the
consumers.)” Source: Deaf Wellness Center, Univ. of Rochester Medical Center
INTERPERSONAL
POSSIBLE DEMANDS:
• Understanding of the interpreter role
• Adherence to expected role norms
• Communication directed to the interpreter
• Power and authority dynamics
• Oppression, dishonesty, & unfairness
• Communication control (e.g., turn-taking)
Source: Dean & Pollard (2001)
POSSIBLE QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF:
• What are the relationships between people?
• How are the individuals the same or different
- e.g. sociolinguistic and cultural background
• What are the expectations of the interpreter, the deaf-blind person, audience members?
• What are the power dynamics at play?
• Are there oppressive or unfair events present?
• Who is controlling the communication?
• How is turn taking happening?
INTERPERSONAL DEMANDS
MENTAL HEALTH -Confidentiality -Transference -Countertransference -Vicarious trauma
INTERPERSONAL
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
• Self-awareness
• Strategies for managing biases, judgments & sensitivities
• Ability to maintain professionalism when interactions are emotionally charged
• Personal insight
• Strategies for caring for self
INTERPERSONAL
ACTIVITY Interpersonal
Four Discrete Demands:
1. Environmental
2. Interpersonal
3. Paralinguistic
4. Intrapersonal
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Paralinguistics
PARALINGUISTIC
POSSIBLE DEMANDS:
• Communication modalities
• Linguistic fluency
• Communication speed
• Communication clarity
• Voice volume; signing space
• Receptive and expressive skills
• Technical vocabulary Source: Dean & Pollard (2001)
1. Seating
2. Contrast
3. Lighting
4. Distance
5. Time
6. Space/Pace
PARALINGUISTIC FACTORS
Physical Environment
Process in Environment
• In order to produce
an accurate
interpretation
additional time might
be necessary.
• Processing time for
satisfactory visual
access may be
prolonged
• Time to read (visually
or tactually)
materials may be
extended
5. TIME
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
– Pre-conference with the Deaf-Blind person
to discuss how the viewing of materials will
take place.
– Pre-conference with your team interpreter
on strategies for maintaining on-going
information. • Notetaking during process, visual referencing for
consumer
– Determine specific roles: language
interpreter vs. visual information
interpreter.
5. TIME
S P A C E
6. Space/Pace
S P A C E • Space between communication
partners gets larger or smaller
• Signing space can get larger or smaller
• Personal space between
communication partners changes
• The concept of space and where things
are located in the environment changes/
takes more precedence.
S P A C E
• Rate of sign language production may
be altered
• Fingerspelling & numerical production
is slowed
• Moving from place to place may be
slowed
• Accessing printed materials takes
longer
CHANGING
NEEDS
-Face-to-Face Two-
Handed Tactile Sign
Language
-Enlarged font via
Large Screen TV
ACTIVITY Paralinguistic
Four Discrete Demands:
1. Environmental
2. Interpersonal
3. Paralinguistic
4. Intrapersonal
DEMAND-CONTROL SCHEMA
Intrapersonal
“Intrapersonal demands are
interpreting challenges or success
requirements that pertain to the
internal physiological or
psychological state of the interpreter
(e.g., the need to tolerate hunger,
pain, fatigue, or distracting
thoughts or feelings.)”
Source: Df Wellness Center, Univ. of Rochester Medical Center
INTRAPERSONAL
POSSIBLE DEMANDS: • Nature and intensity of event
• Vicarious reactions
• Safety concerns
• Physiological responses (e.g., sweating, upset stomach, heart racing, fatigue, etc.)
• Distractions
• Doubts regarding performance
• Availability of supervision and/or peer support
• Liability concerns Source: Dean & Pollard (2001)
INDIVIDUAL
EXPERIENCE:
ACTIVE
INTERNAL
PROCESS
Feedback or internal dialogue (e.g., making a gesture while
thinking, mentally sorting out non-verbal behavior of
another person, thinking about the next meal, etc.)
INTERNAL PROCESSING: • Self-dialogue
• Self-talk
• Inner monologue
• Internal dialogue
• Internal speech
• Process of thoughts, sparking
feelings/emotions and then actions
• Positive or negative
INTRAPERSONAL
POSITIVE: • Thoughts are positive
• Resulting in positive emotions
Examples:
• That was interesting/fun/thought
provoking/informative/inspiring
• That was challenging but I could handle it
• I am improving/learning/growing
• I think he/she likes/respects me
• I feel good about that event/assignment/interaction
• I want to work with that person again
Self-Talk
Self-
Talk
Negative: • Impaired ability to concentrate on the message
• Limiting the capacity to express the thoughts or feelings of others
• Overloaded thoughts and feelings
Examples:
•He/she doesn’t like me
•I’m not good enough
•I’ll never improve
•He/she will complain about me
•I never do that right
•Why did I think I could handle this assignment
Self-Talk
Acknowledging
mistakes,
humanness
and
moving
on…
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
Encouraging self talk
• Consciously acknowledging variables
– the presence and significance of a given demand
– the impact it has on the interpreting assignment
• Awareness of the quality and quantity of your self talk
–Is it primarily positive, negative, or a mix?
–Are you perfectionistic?
–What is the impact on your work?
–How is your personal life influenced?
Intrapersonal Communication
PERFECTIONISM
•The construct – negative and neurotic (Burns, 1980).
– balanced view of perfectionism with positive or normal perfectionism distinguished from a negative or neurotic perfectionism (Hamachek, 1978).
•Contemporary definition – Perfectionism is a multidimensional construct, with both
maladaptive and adaptive potential (Slaney, Rice, Mobley, Trippi, & Ashby, 2001).
PERFECTIONISM
Maladaptive potential •Concerns about performance, including skill competency, are identified as significant contributors to an interpreter’s experience of stress and burnout (Dean & Pollard, 2001; Roziner & Shlesinger, 2010)
Adaptive potential •Conscientiousness includes striving for achievement, efficiency, hard-work, and perfectionist traits and is a significant predictor of occupational performance (Bontempo & Napier, 2011)
PERFECTIONISM
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
Self care
• How do you feel?
–Are you stressed?
• How do you cope?
–What do you need?
–How can you care for yourself?
INTRAPERSONAL
STRESS & COPING
How to Address Stress – Self-care
– Nurturing activities
– Escape
How to Transform Distress – Create meaning
– Infuse a current activity with meaning
– Challenge your negative beliefs and assumptions (e.g.,
Nihilism, cynicism, and despair)
– Participate in community-building activities (e.g., RID
committee, Habitat for humanity, meditation group)
STRESS & COPING
POSSIBLE CONTROLS:
Supervision/Mentorship
• Talking about your thoughts with those
more experienced, finding solutions
Peer support
• Sharing thoughts and feelings with
peers
INTRAPERSONAL
• Issues of Confidentiality
• DB community small
• Dual relationships common
• Job structure-not a lot of time to chit-chat, rushing, may or may not be with partner, sometimes unpredictable work situations
• Not well understood
• Confusing professional issues for loved ones, therapists, & others to comprehend
Challenges to sharing:
Asking for help
• Depends on personal factors
• Including:
• Professional stage of development
• Social Support
• Community Involvement
• Access to Supervision
Resources & Support
STRESS &
COPING
Independent of client-related issues
•Typical environmental
–Problems with workplace
-Administration
-Support
Suffering from serving
•Can lead to exhaustion
•May be unaware
–Unconscious
Compassion Fatigue
• Reserved for extreme circumstances
– Health is suffering
– Outlook on life is negative
– Feel overloaded
– Independent of clients
•Environmental issues
•Problems of workplace
administration
BURNOUT
• Burnout is described as “a syndrome of emotional exhaustion and cynicism that occurs frequently among individuals who do ‘people-work’ of some kind” (Maslach & Jackson, 1981, p. 99).
• Individual begins to experience an increased feeling of emotional exhaustion – which leads to a general feeling of being depleted of
the emotional resources needed to psychologically give of themselves (Maslach & Jackson, 1981).
BURNOUT
Physiologic
Responses to Stress 1. Nervous System
2. Musculoskeletal System
3. Respiratory System
4. Cardiovascular System
5. Endocrine System
6. Gastrointestinal System
7. Reproductive System
www.stress.org
• Continued training – Workshops – Coursework – Experience
• Mentorship – Develop relationship with
mentor who has more experience in that area
• Work on your own self-awareness
• Take care of yourself • Collect and share resources
SUCCESSFUL OUTCOMES
•Assignment Demands
–Use of technology, multi-media
–Group dynamics/activities
ADDITIONAL DEMANDS
ACTIVITY Intrapersonal
30 you. AA female, congenitally deaf and later deaf-blind (fluent ASL, attended various schools for the deaf) mother of two small children. She was recently hospitalized for attempted suicide with a knife. Symptoms include psychotic features (e.g. hallucinations, delusions), depression, and “rage.”
Case Study
•Outpatient referred for 1:1 psychotherapy, family
counseling, & medication management.
•Individual session goals:
1) Symptom reduction;
2) Suicide/Risk assessment
•Family session goals:
1) Improve communication with father;
2) Encourage independence/empowerment (e.g. financially, parenting)
Case Study
Patient
Therapist Interpreter
Case Study: Individual Session
Patient Dad Child
Therapist Interpreter
Case Study: Family Session
•Split into groups •Identify what the potential Demands & Controls are in the given scenario •Patient is Deaf-Blind
–May communicate using tactile, close vision, or tracking
Activity
DEMANDS Environmental, Interpersonal, Linguistic, and Intrapersonal
CONTROLS Appreciation of mental illness, how depression or psychosis manifests and effects families Knowledge of symptoms of depression (guilt, hopelessness, helpless, tearful) or psychosis (delusions, hallucinations) Understanding of the how questions are asked in mental health settings (more open ended) and the purpose behind specific questions (suicide assessments) Awareness of feelings, thoughts and empathetic experiences
Activity
Pre-Assignment
Assignment
Post-Assignment
Three Points of Assessment
Psychotic disorders occur equally as often (or even somewhat less often) in the deaf population as in the hearing population. Contradictory literature on hallucinations
• Current theory states related to audiological history Challenges of accurately diagnoses (e.g. thought disorganization)
• The etiology of deafness • Language dysfluency • Skill and training of ASL interpreters • Evaluation Measures
SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE
Identifying and Assessing Psychosis in Deaf Psychiatric Patients (Landsberger & Diaz, 2011)
You’ve been asked to interpret a counseling session with a deaf client/ patient and a hearing therapist. The deaf person has recently overdosed on drugs and was taken to the hospital for treatment. The therapist has never met with a deaf patient before, but there is a pre-session planned prior to the session.
- What will be important discussion points?
- What would be different about this scenario if it were in an emergency psychiatric evaluation?
Case Study:
Assignment Arranging
• Interpreter related factors • Experience in deaf-blindness, prior knowledge of
assignment and consumer needs, attire, materials, interpreting tools
Adapted from http://www.terptopics.com/DemandControl.htm
DEMAND-CONTROL
SCHEMA
THREE POINTS OF ASSESSMENT 1. Pre-assignment
A. Interpreter-related factors:
• Prior knowledge of the
assignment & working
environment (i.e. location,
content to be discussed)
• Assignment professional
requirements (i.e. attire,
previously established
relationships)
• Preview of materials
• Consumer language needs
• General experience in deaf-
blindness
B. Individual-specific factors
• Logistical information
– Partner, team, lead
• Educational background
– School for the deaf, school for
deaf-blind, mainstreamed
• Language of the individual
– Tactile, close vision, tracking
• Consumer visual needs
• Potential visual environmental
challenges
• Consumer SSP, additional support
needs
Adapted from http://www.terptopics.com/DemandControl.htm
2. Assignment
• Pre-conferencing with consumer & on-site contacts
• Establishing language/communication preference
• Assessing logistics
• Orientation to the environment
• Incorporating visual information/changes in the
environment
• On-going modification process for optimal language
access
Adapted from http://www.terptopics.com/DemandControl.htm
THREE POINTS OF ASSESSMENT
3. Post-assignment
• Post-conferencing with consumer
• Talk about how the session went for the individuals
involved
• Reflect on how the session went for you
– Pros and cons
– Problems and solutions
• Feedback to hiring agent
• specific to visual and additional support needs of the
consumer
• Checklist for future assignments
Adapted from http://www.terptopics.com/DemandControl.htm
THREE POINTS OF ASSESSMENT
Keeping the Balance
Controls
Demands
• The Deaf Wellness Center at the University of Rochester: http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/dwc/
• The Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf: http://www.rid.org
• TerpTopics http://www.terptopics.com/DemandControl.htm
• Identifying and Assessing Psychosis in Deaf Psychiatric Patients (Landsberger & Diaz, 2011)
• Your doctoral studies
RESOURCES