Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 2, 2026

Using Visual and Narrative Methods to Achieve Fair Process in Clinical Care
Published on: February 16, 2011
Conflicts in how interpreters manage their roles in provider-patient interactions
1University of Oklahoma, 610 Elm Ave. Room 135, Norman, OK, USA. ehsieh@ou.edu
Abstract:
Interpreters face challenges because of the various role expectations that others have placed on them and then adopt specific strategies to manage these conflicts. This study examines the conflicts in medical interpreters' role performances, the sources of these conflicts, and interpreters' strategies for resolving conflicts. It is based on in-depth interviews with 26 medical interpreters from 17 languages in the Midwestern area of the USA. The results showed that interpreters experienced four sources of conflicts in their role performances: (a) others' communicative practices, (b) changes in participant dynamics, (c) institutional constraints, and (d) unrealistic role expectations. To resolve conflicts, interpreters justified their roles by identifying the source and location of an assignment, (re)defining the relationships and identities of the provider and the patient, and adopting specific communicative strategies. This study highlights the importance of speaker and contextual factors on interpreters' communicative strategies and management of role conflicts.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution itself.
Barriers to Effective Communication II
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
Ethical Issues
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:
Ethical Dilemmas I
Let us explore some examples to understand the potentially complex moral decisions nurses face.
Take the case of caring for minors, particularly in areas related to reproductive...
Ethical Dilemmas II
Nurses' Legal Responsibilities II
Communication between nurses and patients...

