Interpreting in refugee contexts (IRC) has long been invisible to Western societies and Interpreting Studies. This paper aims at describing the background and features of IRC, and presents a small-scale qualitative study, whose main objectives are: exploring interpreters' perception regarding competences and role, and exploring refugees' perception regarding the quality of the interpreting service. For this purpose, a focus group and unstructured interviews were conducted in Spain. Data were analysed through comparative analysis and coding procedures. Results show interpreters' dissatisfaction with their working conditions and refugees' experience with interpretation seems to be negative and frustrating. Further research in this area is needed in order to raise awareness of communication and integration difficulties of refugees.
Although the world’s forcibly displaced population reached 79.5 million in 2019, their difficult situations and the issues they struggle with remain practically invisible in Spanish society. Therefore, it seems necessary to provide greater insight into an invisible reality to improve the refugees’ situation. The present cross-sectional study aims to draw a general profile of refugees’ and asylum seekers’ main characteristics in Spain and their well-being. A total of 186 refugees living in Spain participated. An ad-hoc questionnaire was administered to obtain data regarding sociodemographic profile, language skills, and social and institutional support. A standardized instrument, SPANE, was used to measure well-being. It can be seen that healthcare, followed by legal aid, are the easiest to access. On the other hand, finding a job, having money, and finding housing are the most difficult. In general, it seems possible to say that the refugees present more positive feelings than negative ones, which implies a positive emotional balance, although the average score obtained for emotional balance is quite far from the highest possible score. We consider this to be a pivotal first step which can provide useful information for the further design of aid strategies to improve this vulnerable group’s situation.
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