Discourse analysis in conference interpreting

This chapter discusses research at the intersection of discourse and interpreting studies, focusing on the application of discourse analysis to conference interpreting research. The chapter consists of two main sections. In the introduction, discourse analysis is defined and its relevance to interpreting studies is identifies. In the first section, the evolution of discourse-analytical approaches in interpreting studies since the 1990s is summarized, with a focus on developments during the past two decades. In the second section, the chapter considers how interpreting studies could benefit from discourse analysis investigating cognitive, pragmatic, interactional, and critical aspects of the approach. Elements of discourse analysis that apply to (conference) interpreting studies are discussed: the cognitive processing of discourse, its pragmatic and socio-interactional nature, and its critical and systemic-functional perspective. Finally interpreting strategies elicited in discourse analysis as a cross-cutting element of interest in various discursive approaches to interpreting studies are discussed, then pedagogical applications of discourse analysis in interpreter training are briefly sketched out. The chapter concludes by asserting that in (conference) interpreter-mediated communicative events, the creation and interactional negotiation of meaning grounded in the intentions of speakers and the expectations of listeners are of crucial importance to interpreting and that discourse analysis can provide a valuable lens for future research of this concept.