A sociolinguistic analysis of the occurrence and types of omissions produced by Australian Sign Language-English interpreters

This chapter presents the findings of a study that explored the linguistic coping strategies of Australian Sign Language (Auslan)-English interpreters (Napier, 2001). The intention of the study was to introduce, for the first time, a sociolinguistic analysis of interpreters working between Auslan and English. Although many academic studies have been completed that focus on signed language interpreting from a sociolinguistic point of view (e.g., Cokely, 1985; Davis, 1990; Metzger, 1995; Roy, 1989), all of them concentrate on the practices of interpreters working between American Sign Language (ASL) and English. Reference to these studies no doubt provides a wider scope of knowledge, and assumptions can be made about the validity of research in relation to Auslan interpreting. Nonetheless, an in-depth sociolinguistic study of Auslan interpreters and their approach to interpreting was much needed to examine this group's practices in an Australian context.