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- Volume 5, Issue 1, 2022
Translation, Cognition & Behavior - Volume 5, Issue 1, 2022
Volume 5, Issue 1, 2022
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Considerations of ecological validity in cognitive translation and interpreting studies
Author(s): Christopher D. Mellinger and Thomas A. Hansonpp.: 1–26 (26)More LessAbstractRenewed interest in research methods used in cognitive translation and interpreting studies (CTIS) has led to increased reflection on the nature of research and experimental design, internal and external validity, and the type and nature of experimental tasks. Of particular concern is the extent to which valid generalization can be made from empirical studies of translation, interpreting, and their associated cognitive behaviors as objects of study. This article traces the definition and history of ecological validity in the extant literature on research methods and philosophy of science, emphasizing three considerations: the experimental setting, the stimuli under investigation, and the behavioral response of participants. Subsequently, we discuss potential misunderstandings or misapplications of appeals to ecological validity, including mundane realism, naturalistic tasks, and various data collection methods. A final section describes key points to consider for research in CTIS. Throughout, the argument considers tradeoffs among various categories of validity as well as the importance of aligning experimental design with research goals. This extensive engagement with a singular aspect of validity is provided to encourage deeper reflection and better communication around the topic of ecological validity.
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Videogame localisation, spelling errors and player reception
Author(s): Mikołaj Deckert and Krzysztof Hejdukpp.: 27–49 (23)More LessAbstractPositioned against the backdrop of the booming videogame industry, the study sheds light on the relationship between player experience and localisation. The experimental manipulation involved spelling errors serving as a proxy to examine how much reception is reshaped by specific characteristics of the target version. The findings indicate that deficient spelling has no traceable effect on player cognitive load, enjoyment or comprehension. From a complementary perspective, while the author of the target version with typos is deemed less diligent than the one in the typo-free condition, they are not perceived as less experienced or less likely to be considered to be a professional translator. On the other hand, spelling errors result in lower translation quality estimations. The discussion is supplemented by results on typo identification and related to findings from film reception.
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Working memory tasks in interpreting studies
Author(s): Serena Ghisellipp.: 50–83 (34)More LessAbstractStudies about working memory (WM) and interpreting have used a variety of methods and results are often conflicting. There is therefore the need to analyse the cognitive tasks which have been used so far to assess their effectiveness in detecting WM performance differences. This paper presents the findings of a meta-analysis that compares the results of interpreters and interpreting students (study group) to the results of non-interpreters (control group) in four cognitive tasks (reading span, n-back task, listening span and dual tasks). Interpreters show a significant WM advantage of medium size over non-interpreters in tasks based on verbal stimuli, but not in tasks based on non-verbal stimuli. In addition, differences are larger when there is a wider gap in interpreting expertise between the two groups.
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Workload and cognitive architecture in translation
Author(s): Robert M. Maierpp.: 84–109 (26)More LessAbstractThis article endeavours to sketch out a consistent merger of models of language production and bilingualism that are currently used in the fields of Translation and Interpreting and of psycholinguistics. The workload resource of Cognitive Verbal Processing and the processing components that it serves are found to be of particular interest in this interdisciplinary perspective. Known psycholinguistic effects that involve workload (i.e., a function of activation energy) are outlined with particular emphasis on their possible relevance in translation processing. This suggests a number of potential lines of research for both fields.
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Analyzing the effects of entrenched grammatical constructions on translation
Author(s): Arndt Heilmann, Jonas Freiwald, Stella Neumann and Zoë Miljanovićpp.: 110–143 (34)More LessAbstractThis study analyzes translation behaviour with respect to the salience of two grammatical constructions that differ in frequency. We assumed that a more frequent construction is also more entrenched in the translator’s mind and that as a result different translation solutions are more readily available. For this reason, we expected that a more frequent construction is translated more quickly than a less frequent construction, resulting in lower reading and typing-related measures of cognitive effort during the translation process. A translation experiment was designed to test this assumption. We triangulated keystroke logging and eye tracking data from 11 professional translators and tested the results using linear mixed regression modelling, controlling for, among others, lexically-based effects of salience. While we did not find statistically significant evidence of a facilitation effect regarding the entrenchment of (partially) abstract grammatical structures (of-NPs), we did find salience effects from lexical sources such as cross-linguistic structural priming and words with typical translation solutions. Lexical effects of salience on the translation process were shown to be more reliable indicators of facilitation in translation than the salience of more abstract linguistic structures – at least if the effect is a result of salience that stems from entrenchment. Since one limitation of our study is its necessarily small sample size, we draw methodological conclusions for improving experimental designs that will be useful for researchers in empirical translation studies.
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How useful? How important? How difficult?
Author(s): Brita Dorerpp.: 144–164 (21)More LessAbstractEnglish ‘gradation’ expressions—the interrogative adverb how followed by an adjective or an adverb—are frequent in questionnaires and they are not straightforward to translate into French. A good translation approach is needed, and there are mainly two options: The recommended approach involves the French adverbs à quel point or dans quelle mesure. The second approach uses a direct question, and the gradation occurs by choosing one of several options in the pre-established answer scale. Could there be a link between questionnaire translators’ expertise and the way they handle these translations, both the product and the process? This exploratory project studied six professional questionnaire translators, whose performance was recorded with concurrent think-aloud and keylogging techniques, and then triangulated. Correlations were analysed qualitatively. The results revealed a link between the questionnaire translators’ expertise and their translations. This confirms the importance of relying on expert translators and further briefing and training them to become good questionnaire translators.
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