This is a case study of a Vietnamese interpreter working for a Head Start center in a midwestern city in the United States. The data are from a larger ethnomethodological study involving nine Southeast Asian families, 10 Southeast Asian children, and three Euro-American Head Start staff. The interpreter was expected to play multiple roles as a Head Start interpreter/health service worker, but these roles were neither explicitly designated nor described by the participants. This article describes the different role expectations of the various participants and the conflict that occurred because of these differences. Interpretation of the data includes description of the following cultural constructs: interpreter roles, independence/interdependence, power/distance, and cultural perspectives about time. Implications drawn from this case study are discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bromer, J. (1999). Cultural variations in child care: Values and actions. Young Children, 54(6), 72—78.
2.
Callaghan, J.W. (1981). A comparison of Anglo, Hopi, and Navajo mothers and infants. In T. M. Field, A. M. Sostek, P. Vietze , & P. H. Liederman (Eds.), Culture and early interactions (pp. 115—131). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
3.
Chan, S. (1986). Parents of exceptional children. In M. K. Kitano & P. C. Chinn (Eds.), Exceptional Asian children and youth: An ERIC exceptional child education report. Reston, VA: ERIC Clearinghouse on Handicapped and Gifted Children. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 276178)
4.
Chang, H., & Holt, G.R. (1994). A Chinese perspective on face as inter-relational concern. In S. Ting-Toomey (Ed.), The challenge of facework cross-cultural and interpersonal issues (pp. 95—132). Albany: State University of New York Press.
5.
Cheng, L.L. (1987). Assessing Asian language performance: Guidelines for evaluating limited-English-proficient students. Rockville, MD: Aspen.
6.
Cheng, L.L. (1995). Integrating language and learning for inclusion . San Diego, CA: Singular.
7.
Chisholm, J.S. (1983). Navajo infancy: An ethnological study of child development. New York: Aldine.
8.
Clancy, P.M. (1986). The acquisition of communicative style in Japanese . In B. B. Schieffelin & E. Ochs (Eds.), Language socialization across cultures (pp. 215—250). Cambridge, England: Cambridge Press.
9.
Delgado-Gaitan, C. (1994). Socializing young children in Mexican-American families: An intergenerational perspective. In P. M. Greenfield & R. R. Cocking (Eds.), Cross-cultural roots of minority child development (pp. 55—86). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
10.
Division for Early Childhood. (2002, January). Website. Available at http://www.dec-sped.org/rppage.html
11.
Fadiman, A. (1997). The spirit catches you and you fall down. New York: The Noonday Press.
12.
Field, T.M., & Widamayer, S.M. (1981). Mother-infant interactions among lower SES Black, Cuban, Puerto Rican and South American immigrants. In T. M. Field, A. M. Sostek, P. Vietze, & P. H. Leiderman (Eds.), Culture and interactions (pp. 41—60). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
13.
Gao, G. (1998). “Don't take my word for it.” Understanding Chinese speaking practices. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 22, 163—186.
14.
Greenfield, P.M., & Cocking, R.R. (1994). Cross-cultural roots of minority child development . Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
15.
Gudykunst, W.B., & Ting-Toomey, S. (1988). Culture and interpersonal communication. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
16.
Hall, E.T. (1990). Understanding cultural differences. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
17.
Hofstede, G. (1984). Culture's consequences: International differences in work-related values. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
18.
Hwa-Froelich, D.A. (2000). Frameworks of education: Perspectives of Asian parents and Head Start staff. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas.
19.
Kim, Y. Y., & Gudykunst, W. B. (Eds.). (1988). Theories in intercultural communication. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
20.
Langdon, H.W., & Cheng, L.L. (2002). Collaborating with interpreters and translators . Eau Claire, WI: Thinking Publications .
21.
Lau, S. (Ed.). (1996). Growing up the Chinese way. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press.
22.
Lecompte, M.D., & Preissle, J. (1993). Ethnography and qualitative design in educational research. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
23.
Lee, E. (Ed.). (1997). Working with Asian-Americans: A guide for clinicians. New York : Guilford Press.
24.
Lehtonen, J. (1991). The role of national stereotypes in intercultural communication. In E. Slembeck (Ed.), Culture and communication (pp. 175— 184). Frankfurt: Verlag fur Interkulturelle Kommunikation.
25.
Lincoln, Y.S., & Guba, E. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
26.
Losardo, A., & Notari-Syverson, A. (2001). Alternative approaches to assessing young children. Baltimore: Brookes.
27.
Lynch, E.W., & Hanson, M.J. (1998). Developing cross-cultural competence: A guide for working with children and their families (2nd ed.). Baltimore: Brookes.
28.
Matsuda, M. (1989). Working with Asian parents: Some communication strategies. Topics in Language Disorders, 9(3), 45—53.
29.
Morrow, R.D. (1991). The challenge of Southeast Asian parental involvement . Minority Education, 20—22.
30.
Myristic, S., & Gudykunst, W.B. (1994). Face in Japan and the United States. In S. Ting-Toomey (Ed.), The challenge of facework cross-cultural and interpersonal issues (pp. 47—94). Albany: State University of New York Press.
31.
Ohtake, Y., Santos, R.M., & Fowler, S.A. (2000). It's a three-way conversation: Families, service providers, and interpreters working together. YoungExceptional Children, 4(1), 12—18.
32.
Patton, M.Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage.
33.
Pederson, P.B., & Ivey, A. (1993). Culture-centered counseling and interviewing skills: A practical guide. Westport, CT: Praeger.
Spradley, J.P. (1979). The ethnographic interview. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
37.
Sue, D.W., & Sue, D. (1990). Counseling the culturally different: Theory and practice (2nd ed.). New York : Wiley.
38.
Ting-Toomey, S., & Kurogi, A. (1998). Facework competence in intercultural conflict: An updated face-negotiation theory. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 22, 187—225.
39.
Tobin, J.J., Wu, D.Y.H., & Davidson, D.H. (1989). Preschool in three cultures . New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
40.
Triandis, H.C. (1995). Individualism and collectivism. In R. E. Nisbett (Ed.), New directions in social psychology. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
41.
Witte, H. (1996). Contrastive culture learning in translator training . In C. Dollerup & A. Lindegarrd (Eds.), Teaching translation and interpreting: II. Insights, aims, visions ( Papers from the Second Language International Conference, Elsinore, Denmark, pp. 73—79). Amsterdam: John Benjamin.
