PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTING

ABD7253

LECTURER:
DR. ROSLEE BIN AHMAD

PREPARED BY
SITI ZUBAIDAH BT HUSSIN
3160103
HASLINDA MAT JAIS
3160101
SHAHRUL NIZAM BIN ABU BAKAR
3160112

GROUP ASSIGNMENT
“BACK TO BACK TRANSLATION”
  TRANSLATION

Translation is the process of transferring written text from one language into another.

Anything that is written can be translated: advertisements, books, games software, legal

documents, websites, film subtitles etc. Translators work either in-house (as employee of an

organisation) or freelance. Usually, translators work from one or more languages into their

mother tongue. Translation from one language to another is actually a fairly complicated

exercise.

Holmes (1988) suggested that the translation process is actually a multi-level

process; while we are translating sentences, we have a map of the original text

in our minds and, at the same time, a map of the kind of text we want to

produce in the target language. Even as we translate serially, we have this

structural concept so that each sentence in our translation is determined not

only by the original sentence, but also by the two maps—of the original text and

of the translated text—which we carry along as we translate.

Translation is ultimately a human activity which enables human beings to exchange ideas and

thoughts regardless of the different tongues used. Al Wassety (2001) in Abdellah (2005) views the

phenomenon of translation as a legitimate offspring of the phenomenon of language, since originally,

when humans spread over the earth, their languages differed and they needed a means through which

people speaking a certain language (tongue) would interact with others who spoke a different

language. Translation is, in Enani's (1997) view, a modern science at the interface of philosophy,

linguistics, psychology, and sociology

 TRANSLATION STEPS

There are six steps for translation. The steps are forward translation, use of expert panel,

back translation, harmonization, pre-testing and preparation of the final version.

  FORWARD TRANSLATION STAGES

Step 1: OVERVIEW

The first step is to scope out the text to be translated. That is, the subject matter and

content, how long it is, the writing style, if it is technical, the various sections, etc. The

translator will typically read or skim read parts of the text to get a feel for the content. Note

key concepts or terminology that will need to be researched, and will decide if any

preliminary background reading is needed. Sometimes the translations for key terms will be

researched and resolved before beginning the translation.

Step 2: INITIAL TRANSLATION

In this step the document is systematically translated, typically in chunks of 5 – 10

words at a time. Choosing the appropriate length of individual text chunks to deal with is

important. Ideally each chunk will be a discrete and complete unit of meaning. But it also has

to be short enough to be retained in short term memory, and anything over about 10 words

can be a struggle. Sentences are frequently longer than this, so will typically be broken down

into shorter units.

Working with chunks that are too short or not discrete meaning units tends to produce

an unnatural and potentially unclear translation, whereas chunks that are too long to easily

remember run the risk of some meaning being missed in the translation. This last sentence for

example might typically be split into 4 separate text chunks in the initial translation process.

Step 3: ACCURACY CHECK

After the first draft is completed, the translator will then methodically work through

his/her translation comparing each chunk of text with the original (source) text. The primary

goal here is to confirm no content has been missed and no meaning misinterpreted. Most
translators will also identify and improve any slightly unnatural or inelegant wording in this

step.

Step 4: CLEAR THE MIND

The next step is very simple - put the translation aside and take a break. Ideally this

should be for a few hours or overnight. The idea is purely to clear the mind to ensure a more

effective fifth and final step.

Step 5: FINAL POLISHING

In the final step the translator re-reads the translation, this time without reference to the

source document, looking solely at quality of expression. Final edits will be made to further

refine and “polish” the translated text.

 FORWARD TRANSLATION

One translator, preferably a specific professional, familiar with terminology of the area

covered by the instrument and with interview skills should be given this task. The translator

should be knowledgeable of the English-speaking culture but his/her mother tongue should be

the primary language of the target culture. Instructions should be given in the approach to

translating, emphasizing conceptual rather than literal translations, as well as the need to use

natural and acceptable language for the broadest audience.

The following general guidelines should be considered in this process. First, the

translators should always aim at the conceptual equivalent of a word or phrase, not a word-

for-word translation, i.e. not a literal translation. They should consider the definition of the

original term and attempt to translate it in the most relevant way. Second, the translators

should avoid the use of any jargon. For example, they should not use: technical terms that

cannot be understood clearly; and colloquialism, idioms or vernacular terms that cannot be
understood by common people in everyday life. Translators should consider issues of gender

and age applicability and avoid any terms that might be considered offensive to the target

population.

 USE OF EXPERT PANEL

A bilingual (in English and the target language for translation) expert panel should be

convened by a designated editor-in-chief. The goal in this step is to identify and resolve the

inadequate expressions/concepts of the translation, as well as any discrepancies between the

forward translation and the existing or comparable previous versions of the questions if any.

The expert panel may question some words or expressions and suggest alternatives. Experts

should be given any materials that can help them to be consistent with previous translations.

Principal investigators and/or project collaborators will be responsible for providing such

materials.

However the number of experts in the panel may vary. In general, the panel should

include the original translator, experts in field, as well as experts with experience in

instrument development and translation. The result of this process will produce a complete

translated version of the questionnaire. Using the same approach as that outlined in the first

step, the instrument will then be translated back to English by an independent translator,

whose mother tongue is English and who has no knowledge of the questionnaire.

 BACK TRANSLATION
 A back translation, which is sometimes also referred to as reverse translation, is the

translation of previously translated content back into its original (source) language. Back

translation is carried out by a native speaker of the target language who has not been involved

in the project’s execution until this point and has no reference materials or original text

available.

This translation quality assurance method is commonly requested by the most

demanding clients with the purpose of verifying the level of accuracy of the original

translation. Back translations may differ stylistically, and some words may be replaced by

their synonyms, but the final text should definitively show the meaning of the original

document as closely as possible. Please note that for the best results, the translator handling

this work must be aware that the job concerns a back translation. This means that the

translator will stick to the source text a little more closely than usual. It is especially

important that small errors or weak sentences in the text are not improved or adapted which is

something that the translator would normally do.

A back translation can show the quality of translated text as an equivalent to its

original meaning. The process could also be called translation validation. The back

translation will help to identify any potential ambiguities or sensitive details that may have

been overlooked or misunderstood in the translation. It also assures that any cross-cultural
issues are addressed and ironed out before publication of the translated text. This will confirm

that the text is conceptually and culturally appropriate for the target audience.

The nuances of translation are far-ranging. A literal word in one language, for

example, may have no equivalent in another language, or could have a completely different

"meaning" or effect in the translated language. This is why translation is an art rather than a

science. A back translation will never be an exact replica of the original source text. Despite

striving for objectivity, translation is often a subjective matter. There is no mathematical

formula to any language, and one translator’s word choice may not exactly match the

preference of another.

No translation can be expected to convey perfectly the "meaning" of what consumers

meant to convey in their own language. Hence, the accredited translators who can translate

verbatim are needed for. All the good work of a focus group moderator in not "interpreting“

verbatim comments can be wiped out by a careless translator. Back translation can improve

the reliability and validity of research in different languages by requiring that the quality of a

translation is verified by an independent translator translating back into the original language.

Original and back translated documents can then be compared. Due to its high cost, back

translation is not overly common, but in very high risk-high return situations is well worth the

investment.

After the back translation is completed, the next step is to compare the back translation to

the source to determine whether or not there are any differences that matter between the two,

and to reconcile those differences either by making changes to the translation or by

confirming that the original translation does convey the proper message.

 ERRORS IN BACK TRANSLATION

In Table 1, the Spanish word prima has more than 15 possible translations, including “the

cost of an insurance policy” and “female cousin.” An incorrect back translation leads to a

false conclusion about the accuracy of the original translation.

In Table 2, the term “water penetration” appeared in an insurance brochure as a covered item.

When translated into Korean, the meaning was changed to “flood” (as evidenced by the back

translation), which was NOT an item covered by the insurance policy. The difference is that

“water penetration” from wind-driven rain is covered by the insurance company, while flood

damage is specifically excluded.

In Table 3, the word médico in Spanish means both doctor and physician. No improvement is

possible by asking either the original English-to-Spanish translator or the back translator to

make a change because we are really dealing with a synonym here, so médico is correct.

In Table 4, the original English and the back translation vary considerably in sentence

structure and word choice. The content, however, is the same. Very little improvement, if

any, will result from trying to force the back translation to be a word-for-word equivalent

of the original English by editing the Spanish translation.

 Sometimes a translation can reveal a problem with a word or phrase that no one ever

considered when drafting the original English source text. In Table 5 the translator (and

the back translator) can only offer their interpretations of what they thought the writer

meant to say. Were both the employee and the supervisor “unauthorized,” or just the

employee? The original English-to Spanish translator and editor both assumed that

“unauthorized” modified only the noun “employee,” which may not be what the original

English author meant.

 HARMONIZATION

Since some cultures share the language of origin (e.g., Latin), it is helpful to review if

the versions of the instrument in those countries have followed the same directions (i.e., if

the same alternative has been chosen when several exist in each culture/language). This

important step will be the responsibility of a central body, for example, the WHO in the

case of studies funded by that organization.

 PRE-TESTING

The objective of this test is to determine if the items that compose the experimental

version of the survey questionnaire are clear, written without ambiguity and in a language

that is well understood by the target population, in our case, the general population.

 OBSTACLES IN TRANSLATION

A translator or an interpreter often meets some specific obstacles on a smooth way of

their work. First, the different structures of the languages; these are linguistic obstacles. They

can be classified as follows:

– obstacles in the original text;

– obstacles in the process of translation;

– obstacles connected with the receiver;

– obstacles in the target text.

Obstacles in the original text may be connected with the text integrity – external and

internal and text coherence; linguistic mistakes (phonetic, lexical etc.); and mechanical or

technical mistakes. Text integrity and coherence are of importance when the parts of the text

are strongly connected and the fracture of the text elements chain destroys the text.

Second is the different psychosocio-ethnological differences. These are cultural obstacles.

At the core of the exercise is the fact that there is an underlying philosophy for each

language. Obstacles in the process of translation are explained by the level of the translator’s

knowledge of SL, TL, mixture of language and speech, imperative and dispositive language norms

etc. The recipient may create a lot of obstacles in the translation process. Here of importance are the

lacks of background when a translator has to give explanations, meaning barrier, communicative

barrier and psychological barrier.

And last but not least the secondary text and its presentation also may create some

problems by its form or content. These may be problems connected with its readability and

convenience or extralinguistic problems of political, sexual or age correctness etc.

Mechanical mistakes can be also presented by all sorts of misprints, wrong numbers etc.

 BACK TRANSLATION GUIDELINESS

There are some guidelines in back translation. A back translation should follow the same

quality control procedures as the original translation. The comparisons of the source text with

the text from a back translation should focus only on the “differences that matter.” They
need to ignore the “differences that do not matter.” Source text ambiguities may arise that

should be resolved by the author of the original source text.

A good translation is one that carries all the ideas of the original as well as its structural and

cultural features. Massoud (1988) sets criteria for a good translation as follows:

1. A good translation is easily understood.

2. A good translation is fluent and smooth.

3. A good translation is idiomatic.

4. A good translation conveys, to some extent, the literary subtleties of the original.

5. A good translation distinguishes between the metaphorical and the literal.

6. A good translation reconstructs the cultural/historical context of the original. A good translation

makes explicit what is implicit in abbreviations, and in allusions to sayings, songs, and nursery

rhymes.

7. A good translation will convey, as much as possible, the meaning of the original text.

El Shafey (1985: 93) suggests other criteria for a good translation; these include three main

principles the knowledge of the grammar of the source language plus the knowledge of

vocabulary, as well as good understanding of the text to be translated. The ability of the translator

to reconstitute the given text (source-language text) into the target language also affects the

criteria of good translation. The translation should capture the style or atmosphere of the original

text; it should have all the ease of an original composition.

 REFERENCES

Abdellah, A. S. (2002). What Every Novice Translator Should Know. Translational Journal .

El Shafey, F.,A.,M.,(1985). "Compounding in English and Arabic, Implications for

Translation Methodology" M.A Thesis, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University.

Holmes J. S. (1988). Translated Papers on Literary Translation and Translation Studies.

Amsterdam, Rodopi,. ISBN 90-6203-739-9. cited in Osimo, B. (2000). "Translation Course"
part one.

Massoud, M.,F.,(1988). Translate to Communicate, A Guide for Translators. New York:

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data.