El papel de las entidades contratantes en la interpretación en los servicios públicos: ejemplos del contexto catalán

The present paper is set in Catalonia and focuses on the organisations that provide public ser-vice interpreting (PSI) and intercultural mediation (IM) in education, social and healthcare settings, which are mainly public-funded associations and institutions. The present research is based on content and discourse analysis of in-depth interviews to the coordinators of the associations or institutions which provide PSI or IM. Relying on this qualitative approach to compare views, we study issues such as informants' definition of the service they are in charge of, their perception of the interpreters' role and functions, or their attitude towards the use of ethical codes. In the conclusion, employers' engagement and influence in interpret-ers' performance will be discussed and their important role in the development of PSI as a profession will be stressed.