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The aim of the present article is to give an overview of the most important approaches to translation competence. As the term ‘competence’ is used in a somewhat arbitrary way in translation studies, psychological approaches to competence are reviewed first. Then some influential translation competence models are presented and analyzed. Translation competence models are classified into three categories based on Pym (2003). The outlined translation competence models are also related to the psychological concepts of competence described at the beginning of the study. Finally, recurrent issues related to translation competence are identified and discussed briefly. These issues involve the relationship between language competence and translation competence; the existence of a separate transfer component of competence, the status of natural translation and the differences between L1→L2 and L2→L1 translation. It is concluded that none of the models of translation competence is inherently better than the others. It is always the purpose of a given piece of research or project that should determine the type of competence model to be adopted.
This article first presents widely accepted definitions and models of the translation process and translation competence and notes the lack of a fully developed model of translation competence acquisition (TCA). The Input-Interaction-Output Model of second language acquisition (SLA) is introduced, after which these various models are combined into a proposed model of translation competence acquisition. Each stage in the model is then explained from the point of view of SLA, TCA and translation pedagogy with special attention to meta-cognition and cognitive conflict. Finally, some of the limitations of the model and fields for future research are presented.
The PACTE Group is carrying out empirical-experimental research into translation competence and its acquisition in written translation. The aim of this article is to present the results obtained for the translation competence indicator ‘Acceptability’ of translation products and the variable “Decision-making” in an experiment involving 35 expert translators and 24 foreign-language teachers. After a presentation of PACTE’s theoretical model of translation competence, the design of our research project is described (hypothesis, experimental universe and sample, variables, data collection instruments) followed by the results obtained for the indicator ‘Acceptability’ of subjects’ translations and, finally, the results obtained for the variable “Decision-making” are presented. The variable “Decision-making” evidences decisions made during the translation process which involve the use of automatic and non-automatic cognitive resources (internal support) and the use of different sources of documentation (external support). The indicators used to measure this variable are ‘Sequences of Actions’ and ‘Acceptability’. The results obtained shed light on the strategic and instrumental sub-competences of translation competence.
This paper gives an overview of the methods employed in process-oriented investigations of translation competence and its development and describes their advantages and drawbacks. Furthermore, it provides a survey of the findings gained in this field of research so far. It then focuses on desiderata. Special emphasis will be placed on the contrastive evaluation of methods, on longitudinal studies, as well as on the documentation and dissemination of process data. The design of one longitudinal study, TransComp, which investigates the development of translation competence in 12 students of translation over a period of three years and compares it to that of 10 professional translators with more than 10 years of experience, will be introduced. Furthermore, asset management systems will be suggested to make translation process data accessible to the scientific community and lay the foundations for a platform for information exchange between scholars working in the field of translation process research. At the end of the article, the contributions collected in this volume will be introduced.
During the second decade of the twenty-first century, documentation in electronic format has come to form a normal part of the workplace for all professional translators. The aim of this article is to present the results of the acquisition of the instrumental sub-competence, which is based on the use of electronic resources. These results are part of empirical-experimental research carried out by the PACTE group on Translation Competence Acquisition. In this study, the evolution of the acquisition of this sub-competence for five groups of translation students, from the first year of their degree course to their entry into the labour market, was measured using a methodological design that simulates a longitudinal study. The experiment was carried out in 2011 with 130 students on the Translation and Interpreting degree course. Five indicators related to the direct and inverse translation processes are analysed: number of resources, time taken on searches, time taken on searches at each stage, number and variety of searches. These indicators are then correlated with the quality of the final product of the translation process: translation acceptability. The results produced by the translation students are compared with those obtained in the Translation Competence experiment, carried out by the PACTE group in 2005−2006 with 35 professional translators.1
To those of us working in the field of translation and translation studies,Professor Wolfram Wilss hardly needs an introduction, since he is known and respected world-wide as one of the founders of the science of translation. His books “Übersetzungswissenschaft - Probleme und Methoden” (1977), “Kognition und Übersetzen” (1988), “Übersetzungsfertigkeit - Annäherungen an einen komplexen übersetzungspraktischen Begriff” (1992), “Übersetzungsunterricht. Eine Einführung. Begriffliche Grundlagen und methodische Orientierungen” (1996), “Knowledge and Skills in Translator Behaviour” (1996), and “Translation and Interpreting in the 20th century” (1999) are considered today as some of the “standard works” of translation studies. From the start, Dr. Wilss attempted to analyse translation in a broader context. He has always believed that translation means far more than the reformulation in the target language of “what is written on the page”. For many years Professor Wilss headed the Language Service of the Chancellor's Office of the Federal Republic of Germany, where he acquired considerable experience in the practice of translation and interpreting. From 1966 until 1990 he served as director and executive professor of the “Interpreters' Institute”, the “Institute for Translation and Interpretation”, and from 1968 he was Professor of Applied Linguistics with a specialisation in the theory of translation. Since 1990 he has been emeritus professor, and he has remained active in academic life, publishing numerous books and attending many of the major conferences on translation studies, language policy and linguistics. The following conversation took place in Berlin on 5 July 2003 during a break in a conference organised to mark the tenth anniversary of the foundation of the Bundesverband der Dolmetscher und Übersetzer Berufsgruppe Konferenzdolmetscher as well as the foundation of the Verband der Konferenzdolmetscher. At the conference, Professor Wilss gave a lecture entitled “Interpreting - in a strained relationship between memory, attention and value added”. The text of the interview was translated from German into English by Andrew Gane.
Although not always labeled as such, information literacy has been implicitly recognized as a key aspect of translation competence by practitioners, teachers, and scholars. Yet, researchers have only recently begun to systematically examine information behavior in the translation processes of students and professionals to determine how translation-centered information literacy develops. The questions of how and whether translators use the tools and resources at their disposal and how students, novices, and professionals differ in this regard remain to be investigated in detail. The multi-method approach we use to analyze translation competence and information behavior combines data from ethnographic observation of the translation situation, surveys, semi-structured interviews, keystroke logging, computer screenshot recordings, concurrent and cue-based retrospective verbalizations of recorded translation processes, and eye-tracking. We report on the initial phases and results of a study on translators’ information behavior to indicate how this type of research can contribute to understanding the development of translation competence and to improving information literacy teaching.
The aim of this article is to demonstrate how the achievements of the behavioural approach to competences may enhance the study of translation competence. The first section sets out the basic premises of the behavioural approach to studying competences in the workplace from its US origins in the field of work psychology to its present application in human resources management. The second section describes four translation studies which fall within the behavioural approach to studying competences: a competence model proposal for identifying good translators; two surveys carried out with the aim to draw up competence repertoires according to professional profiles of translators and interpreters; and a study of translator competence in a business context. The article concludes with a discussion on the minor impact of behavioural studies in Translation Studies; proposes that behavioural studies should be developed further marking out possible lines of research; underlines the complementary nature of behavioural and cognitive studies applied to research into translation competence; stresses the need to describe professional profiles with an eye to optimising translator training and, finally, draws up development perspectives of behavioural studies in our field.
of the European language industry . European Language Industry Association . https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/2019_language_industry_survey_report.pdf . Accessed 12 May 2020 . EMT . ( 2017 ). European Masters in Translation Competence
Despite the economic importance of translation work, research can hardly keep pace with current developments, especially the use of electronic resources. A growing body of literature on writing processes in various languages and domains (e.g. journalism, education) has provided insight into how professionals and students use language and language resources. However, the questions of how translators use electronic, non-electronic, and internal linguistic resources and of how novices and experts differ in this regard remain to be investigated in detail. A multi-method approach called progression analysis, which combines ethnographic observation, interviews, computer logging, screenshot recordings, and cue-based retrospective verbalizations, has been used to explore differences between novice and expert journalists and lends itself ideally to the domain of translation. Progression analysis captures diverse aspects of translation processes as students and professionals translate and revise their texts and allows us to access their metalinguistic awareness in order to gain insight into their translation competence. The realization of this awareness in different strategies for translating to and from the translator’s dominant language is highlighted for the language combination German and English, and differences between novices’ and experts’ awareness of their revision processes and resource use are identified.
