The mental health interpreter’s relational agency and therapeutic alliance

A balancing act: how interpreters affect the therapeutic alliance in psychotherapy with trauma-affected refugees—a qualitative study with therapists

“…Especially in early stages of the therapy and when the concept of psychotherapy is new to some of the patients, the presence of an interpreter can demonstrate and encourage that the therapist and the method of psychotherapy are trustworthy. Similar, therapists in other studies reported that the presence of an interpreter can enhance the feeling of trust and security in patients, which in turn is seen as a foundation to form the therapist-patient alliance ( Delizée and Michaux, 2022 ). On the other hand, interpreters were perceived as a filter between the therapist and the patient.…”

“…Based on the study findings the TA in IMPs can be described as a therapist-interpreter-patient alliance triangle consisting of three distinct alliances which were perceived as different but strongly intertwined and mutually influential: the therapist-patient, therapist-interpreter and interpreter-patient alliance. In line, Delizée and Michaux (2022) elaborate that by actively forming an alliance with the therapist and the patient, the interpreter might indirectly influence the alliance formation between therapist and patient. Participants in this study stated that forming and maintaining a good TA requires balancing all these three dyadic alliances, whereby forming a trustful therapist-patient alliance is still viewed as the main focus.…”

“…Also, therapists in this study expressed that a good working alliance requires mutual appreciation of each other’s profession and emphasized that therapists need to acknowledge interpreters as professionals. Delizée and Michaux (2022) added that the interpreter needs to understand the goals and methods of psychotherapy and that besides mutual trust and respect, a clear understanding of roles is necessary for alliance formation. This highlights why the use of untrained individuals as interpreters (e.g., family member, multilingual staff members) should be avoided and the use of qualified or so called professional interpreters encouraged ( Flores, 2005 ; Karliner et al, 2007 ; Flores et al, 2012 ; Kilian et al, 2014 ).…”

“…It is known that patients’ distrust toward the interpreter can negatively affect the therapeutic process ( Hunt and Swartz, 2017 ; Dabic, 2021 ; Hanft-Robert et al, 2021 ; Delizée and Michaux, 2022 ). Also, participants in this study emphasized that patients’ distrust, arising for example from doubts about the interpreter’s professionalism and commitment to confidentiality, hinders the formation of a good TA.…”

Improving feeling of control and trust in interpreter-mediated mental health consultations.

“…(Leanza et al, 2014, p. 89)Thus, mental health trained interpreters are not merely translators of spoken words. They convey meanings and collaborate to construct a (triadic) therapeutic alliance (Delizée & Michaux, 2022; Hanft-Robert et al, 2022).…”