Language and Emotion: Analyzing the Linguistic Dimensions of Vicarious Trauma in Public Service Interpreters

The relationship between language and emotion is complex and multilayered, as language helps
regulate emotions and may signal psychological distress. Interpreters, whose main working tool is
language, are often (repeatedly) exposed to trauma. This exposure can lead to a psychological
phenomenon known as vicarious traumatization (VT). Mirroring symptoms of PTSD or burnout, VT
can severely impact one’s personal and professional life and potentially affect self-perception. Trauma
can also cause dysfunction in speech production, manifesting in (para)linguistic and structural
markers (i.e., trauma language). Investigating trauma language and its correlation with VT in
interpreters provides an innovative and promising research path in the field of interpreting studies.
Our aim is to introduce linguistic analysis alongside interviews, psychometric questionnaires and
biometric data to study VT in interpreters, ultimately understanding how trauma compromises their
linguistic efficiency. In doing so, this study offers a rare window into understanding how trauma
simultaneously impacts both the processor and producer of language – a perspective unavailable
through any other professional context. Moreover, this study will allow us, for the first time, to
document and analyze the (para)linguistic manifestations of vicarious trauma, contributing to a
broader understanding of how trauma shapes language use and opening up new avenues for
linguistic analysis in high-stakes communication.