In Search of a Cognitive Model for Interpreting Expertise

Interpreters are often considered a special group of bilinguals who not only enjoy the benefits of bilingualism but also possess abilities acquired through their training or experience in interpreting. However, how much an interpreter’s expertise derives from their domain-general bilingual abilities and how much is attributable to their domain-specific aptitude for interpreting still remain unknown. In this chapter, I attempt to answer these questions by first creating a cognitive profile of expert interpreters based on the research on interpreting expertise. Assuming that the interpreter’s cognitive profile reflects attributes from both sources, constructs in the profile, such as executive functions and working memory, will then be examined against evidence found in empirical studies and discussed in their relationship to possible aspects that may be specific to the domain of interpreting.