Résumés
Abstract
Functionalist approaches to translation brought about a shift in the status and role of the translator: the translator is now considered to be an active, responsible agent in the communication process, which increases the importance of translation expertise and translation competence. Translation competence has thus attracted mounting research interest; however, empirical studies have primarily been conducted in controlled environments, omitting the translation context that professional translators usually work within. This study offers empirical evidence of the importance of the translation context when investigating translation competence. Based on a previous empirical study of translated Patient Information Leaflets, which showed a lack of translation competence, this study includes the translators’ perception using the focus group methodology. Results show the strong influence of contextual constraints on medical translators’ processes and thus products. The study concludes that an analysis of translation products alone may give a skewed picture of translators’ competence.
Keywords:
- translation competence,
- medical translation,
- translational constraints,
- focus group,
- agency
Résumé
Les approches fonctionnalistes de la traduction ont conduit à une modification du statut et du rôle du traducteur : le traducteur est maintenant considéré comme un agent actif responsable du processus de communication, ce qui accentue l’importance de l’expertise et de la compétence en traduction. La compétence en traduction a donc soulevé un intérêt croissant chez les chercheurs, or, la plupart des études ont été menées dans des environnements contrôlés, sans tenir compte du contexte de traduction dans lequel travaillent habituellement les traducteurs professionnels. La présente étude établit l’importance du contexte de traduction dans l’investigation de la compétence en traduction. Basée sur une précédente étude de traductions de notices d’information des patients ayant révélé un manque de compétence en traduction, elle fait intervenir la perception vécue des traducteurs et s’appuie sur la méthode des groupes de réflexion. Les résultats démontrent le fort impact des contraintes contextuelles sur les processus de travail du traducteur médical, et donc sur les produits. En conclusion, l’étude établit qu’une analyse isolée des produits de traduction risque de produire une image déformée de la compétence des traducteurs.
Mots-clés :
- compétence en traduction,
- traduction médicale,
- contraintes de traduction,
- groupe de réflexion,
- agentivité
Resumen
Los enfoques funcionalistas de la traducción han producido un cambio del estatus y del papel del traductor: ahora el traductor es considerado como un agente activo y responsable en el proceso de comunicación, lo que acentúa la importancia de la pericia traductora y la competencia traductora. Por lo tanto, la competencia traductora ha atraído un interés creciente de investigación. Sin embargo, los estudios empíricos se han llevado a cabo principalmente en entornos controlados sin tener en cuenta el contexto de la traducción en el que suelen trabajar los traductores profesionales. Este estudio ofrece evidencia empírica de la importancia del contexto de la traducción en la investigación de la competencia traductora. Basándose en un estudio empírico previo de Folletos de Información para el Paciente traducidos, que ha revelado una falta de competencia traductora, este estudio incluye la percepción de los traductores utilizando la metodología de grupos focales. Los resultados muestran la fuerte influencia de las restricciones contextuales en los procesos de trabajo de los traductores médicos y, por tanto, en los productos. El estudio concluye que un análisis aislado de los productos de traducción puede dar una imagen sesgada de la competencia de los traductores.
Palabras clave:
- competencia traductora,
- traducción médica,
- restricciones de traducción,
- grupo focal,
- agencia
Parties annexes
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