This article attempts to provide some basic guidelines to clients and researchers in finding skilled interpreters who will add quality to their research, so they will obtain better results. Heard and understood Having the right interpreter means that the researcher's every word is heard and understood by clients in the back room, but most important of all, every word and answer uttered by the respondents is accurately interpreted within the appropriate cultural context and meaning. Very few people are truly bilingual and with a full command of two languages. Most bilingual persons speak, write and understand one of the languages much better, usually the one used most during formal education years. A high-quality simultaneous interpreter can rapidly transfer from one language to another words, meanings and context, never literally, but in a culturally relevant form.
Simultaneous interpretation is truly a special skill that requires very strong concentration.
During the sessions, the mind of the interpreter is on autopilot. Most interpreters need to practice very hard in order to develop the required speed and end a sentence about a second after the original-language speaker. Stay away from impromptu interpreters whose only qualification is being Hispanic by surname or by some ability to speak Spanish. Chances are that they never attended school in a Latin American country, so they have no formal education in the language. Spanish could be limited.