The intersections of culture and power in clinician and interpreter relationships: A qualitative study

Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol. 2015 Jul;21(3):450-7. doi: 10.1037/a0037535. Epub 2014 Aug 4.

Abstract

Ongoing racial/ethnic health disparities place increasing emphasis on the importance of interpreters in mental health treatment. Yet there is a limited body of research examining how interpreters and clinicians work together in delivering care. This article used an ethno-culturally informed qualitative procedure to ask interpreters and clinicians about their experiences in cross-language mental health treatment. Seventeen semistructured interviews were conducted with 10 interpreters and 7 clinicians. The interplay of power was experienced differently by interpreters and clinicians as exemplified by 3 categories of meaning: Interpreters speaking out, The relationship matters, and Who has the power? The authors recommend future research focus on the clinician-interpreter relationship as an essential piece of cross-cultural mental health delivery.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cultural Characteristics*
  • Culturally Competent Care*
  • Female
  • Healthcare Disparities / ethnology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mental Health / ethnology
  • Physician-Patient Relations
  • Physicians / psychology*
  • Qualitative Research
  • Translating*