Why are two interpreters sometimes required for one deaf person?
The number of interpreters required for any given assignment is determined by the requirement for effective communication and the physical/mental limitations of the interpreter. Interpreting is hard work! Even interpreting for a single individual can exhaust the interpreter after only a short amount of time. The mental experience has been likened to speaking English while simultaneously writing French. Furthermore, prolonged intensive sessions over a career can result in debilitating repetitive stress injuries. Although all situations are unique, SRI Interpreting generally observes assignments of over 60 minutes per session require a team assignment. For more information, see “Team Interpreting,” published by RID.
