Dr Natalia Rodriguez Vicente
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Email
natalia.rodriguezvicente@essex.ac.uk -
Location
4.320, Colchester Campus
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Academic support hours
Thursdays, 12pm - 2pm
Profile
Biography
I am a Lecturer in the Department of Languages and Linguistics at the University of Essex, where I serve as the Director of the MA Translation, Interpreting, and Subtitling, and as the Director of Research Impact. My research focuses on interpreter-mediated communication between linguistically and culturally diverse patients and service providers in mental healthcare settings. My work covers three key areas: (1) how interpreter mediation shapes relational practices between service users and providers; (2) culturally bound conceptualisations of mental health conditions and associated 'idioms of distress'; and (3) strategies for interpreters and service providers to engage in effective interdisciplinary working dynamics to support delivery of equitable and culturally sensitive care, which is a key aspect of my research impact activities. Currently, I am PI on the British Academy funded project ‘SPARK’ (2024-2026) on building capacity for Kenya-based Early-Career Researchers in Applied Linguistics and Psychology. I have also been a recipient of the University of Essex QR International Impact fund (2024-2025) for a project on improving interprofessional collaboration between mental health providers and interpreters in South Africa. Currently, I am a collaborator on a project funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences Networking Grant (2025-2027): "South Africa-UK network activities for enhancing sign language interpreting in statutory health and social care". Previously, I was Co-Investigator for the transdisciplinary NIHR-SSCR funded project ‘INforMHAA’ on interpreter mediation in Mental Health Act assessments (2021-2024). Prior to joining Essex, I was a Research Assistant for the Evidence for Evaluation and Improvement (EEvIT) unit at the NHS Scotland headquarters, working on a project on person-centred care. My PhD on interpreter mediation in Psychological Medicine, conducted at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh) received the international CIUTI Award to the most outstanding contribution to the field of Translation & Interpreting Studies completed at a CIUTI university in 2021. I welcome enquiries for PhD supervision in the fields of discourse analysis, translation and interpreting, interactional pragmatics, and healthcare communication. Additionally, I am open to collaborating with researchers beyond these fields to pursue funding opportunities that support interdisciplinary projects.
Qualifications
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PhD - Interpreting Studies (Health) Heriot-Watt University,
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MSc - Conference Interpreting and Translation (Distinction) Heriot-Watt University,
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BA - Modern languages Universidad de Salamanca,
Appointments
University of Essex
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Lecturer (R), Language and Linguistics, University of Essex (1/9/2021 - present)
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Director of Impact for Department of Languages & Linguistics, University of Essex (12/9/2023 - present)
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Director of MA Translation, Interpreting & Subtitling, University of Essex (1/8/2023 - present)
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Departmental Ethics Officer, University of Essex (1/6/2022 - 1/9/2024)
Other academic
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Research assistant, Evidence and Evaluation for Improvement (EEvIT) unit, Healthcare Improvement Scotland - NHS Scotland (1/8/2019 - 1/1/2020)
Research and professional activities
Research interests
Medical humanities
Interactional pragmatics
Methodologies for interpreting research
Multilingual healthcare communication
Current research
Academy of Medical Sciences: 2025-2027 South Africa-UK network for enhancing sign language interpreting in statutory health and social care
Conferences and presentations
[Confirmed] Interpreter positionality and Mental Health Act Assessments
Panel: Behind the Protective Shield of Neutrality: Interpreter Positionality in Mental Health Care, 11th EST Congress: The Changing Faces of Translation and Interpreting Studies, 30/3/2025
[In]equalities around interpreter mediation in mental health
Invited presentation, Linguistic Injustice and Inequality in the Public Domain, Stirling, 13/3/2025
Applying Discourse Analytical approaches to the analysis of interpreter-mediated interaction: a matter of social justice
Invited presentation, Uniwersytet Warszawski - Instytut anglistyki, 13/1/2025
Interdisciplinary influences in meaning-making
57th Annual Conference of the British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL), Colchester, United Kingdom, 7/9/2024
Enhancing workforce knowledge and skills in mental health
London City Mental Health Research Centre, London, United Kingdom, 25/6/2024
AMHP and interpreter experiences of interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act assessments: Implications for AMHP practice and education
National Institute for Health Research School of Social Care Research Annual Conference 2024, United Kingdom, 25/4/2024
Interpreting in specialised contexts: context-based decision-making in Mental Health Act assessments
Translation and Cultural Sustainability: Challenges and new avenues, Salamanca, Spain, 18/4/2024
Interpreter-mediated mental health act assessments
National Institute for Health Research SSCR Annual Conference, Chancery Lane, London, 18/4/2023
Interpreting in mental health act assessments (INForMHAA): Building an evidence-based training model
8th International Conference on PSIT (TISP8), Universidad de Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, 22/3/2023
Building an evidence/based training model based on the INForMHAA project findings
APTIS 2022: Translation & Interpreting pedagogy in a post-pandemic world, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom, 18/11/2022
Applying frameworks from interactional pragmatics in the analysis of interpreter-mediated interaction
CIUTI International conference 2022, Lima, Peru, 17/9/2022
Exploring professional taboos in interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act assessments
EFSLI 2022 Conference, Manchester, 4/9/2022
Interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act assessments: the INforMHAA study
National institute for Health Research (NIHR) School for Social Care Research Annual Conference, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, 26/4/2022
Ethics of exploring interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act assessments
CIUTI Conference 2021: Ethics and professional codes of practice for translators and interpreters: new contexts in the profession and training, University of Granada, 16/9/2021
Interactional pragmatics and interpreter-mediated mental healthcare interactions
17th International Pragmatics Conference, Winterthur, Switzerland, 27/7/2021
The ‘vast and differentiated’ nature of the mental healthcare field and its impact on interpreters’ role/positioning
Researching Interactional Variation across settings: Impact on Interpreters’ Role, Centre for Translation and Interpreting Studies in Scotland (CTISS), Edinburgh, United Kingdom, 22/2/2021
Interpreting psychometric tests: the human factor in interpreter-mediated mental healthcare consultations
7th International conference on public services interpreting and translation (PSIT7), Madrid, Spain, 26/3/2020
What aspects of context affect interpreting performance?
InDialog 3 / ENPSIT Interpreter practice, research and training: the impact of context, Antwerp, 29/11/2019
Person-centred care when linguistically and culturally diverse (LACD) patients are involved
International Symposium for Young Researchers. Departament de Traducció i d'Interpretació. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 29/6/2019
Inter-professional collaboration in interpreter-mediated mental healthcare in the age of artificial intelligence
Critical Link International 9 Tokyo (CLI9), International University of Health and Welfare (IUHW), Tokyo, Japan, 14/6/2019
Healthcare interpreting and person-centred care
6th Durham Postgraduate Conference on Translation Studies, University College, Durham, United Kingdom, 1/6/2019
Teaching and supervision
Current teaching responsibilities
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Language Expert 1 (LA041)
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Concepts of Translation and Cultural Mediation (LA043)
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Translation, Interpreting and Subtitling Skills (LA067)
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Interpreting Practice I (LA835)
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Interpreting Practice II (LA840)
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Forensic Linguistics (LG364)
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Conference Interpreting Case Studies (LA897)
Publications
Journal articles (4)
Tipton, R., Napier, J., Rodríguez Vicente, N., Young, A., Vicary, S. and Hulme, C., ‘Just interpret’: problematising demands and controls for effective interprofessional working in statutory mental health assessments. Interpreting
Young, A., Vicary, S., Tipton, R., Rodriguez Vicente, N., Napier, J., Hulme, C. and Espinoza, F., (2024). Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) perspectives on interpreter mediated Mental Health Act assessments. Journal of Social Work. 24 (2), 219-239
Vicary, S., Young, A., Rodriguez Vicente, N., Tipton, R., Napier, J. and Hulme, S., (2024). The luxury of time: a reflexive thematic analysis of omnipresence, contradiction, and passivity in interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act Assessments. Qualitative Social Work: research and practice. 24 (1), 111-126
Rodriguez Vicente, N., Young, A., Tipton, R., Napier, J., Vicary, S. and Hulme, C., (2024). Interpreter mediation in statutory mental health assessments: a scoping review. Interpreting and Society: An Interdisciplinary Journal. 4 (2), 159-195
Book chapters (2)
Monteoliva-García, E. and Rodriguez Vicente, N., (2023). Characterising ‘Interpreting Problems’ in Two Public Service Settings. In: A Qualitative Approach to Translation Studies: Spotlighting Translation Problems. Editors: De la Cova, E. and Calvo, E., . Routledge: Taylor & Francis. 273- 288. 9781032182483
Rodriguez Vicente, N., Napier, J. and de Pedro Ricoy, R., (2021). Dialogue Interpreting and Person-Centred Care in a Clinical Mental Healthcare Setting. In: Empirical Studies of Translation and Interpreting: The Post-Structuralist Approach. Editors: Wang, C. and Binghan, Z., . Routledge. 29- 48. 9780367856106
Reports and Papers (4)
Rodriguez Vicente, N., Multiple case study evaluation of 'What matters to you?' in day-to-day practice
Young, A., Tipton, R. and Rodriguez Vicente, N., Mind your language. Interpreters in Mental Health Act assessments
Rodriguez Vicente, N., Young, A., Tipton, R., Napier, J., Vicary, S. and Hulme, C., (2024). InforMHAA: Best practices for Approved Mental Health Professionals and Interpreters working together
Young, A., Rodriguez Vicente, N., Tipton, R., Napier, J., Vicary, S. and Hulme, C., (2022). Scoping Review of interpreter-mediated assessments under the Mental Health Act (1983) and international equivalents
Thesis dissertation (1)
Rodriguez Vicente, N., (2021). Dialogue interpreting in Psychological Medicine: an exploration of rapport management practices
Grants and funding
2025
Addressing language-based inequalities: improving interprofessional collaboration between mental health providers and interpreters in South Africa
University of Essex (QR Impact Fund)
2024
Building capacity to publish in high-impact journals through mentorship and interdisciplinary training for Kenya-based early career researchers in Applied Linguistics and Psychology
British Academy
2021
The INforMHAA study: Interpreter-mediated mental health act assessments (Extension with Manchester)
National Institute for Health Research
Contact
Academic support hours:
Thursdays, 12pm - 2pm
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