atc annual conference 2008 1 media langues translator’s price and training: quality indicators ?...
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ATC Annual Conference 2008 1Media Langues
Translator’s Price and Training:
Quality Indicators ?
Giselle Sanchez
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Translation: an unregulated profession
Anyone can become a translator
Graduates, any level Inexperienced bilingualsFrom 20-year olds to retired workers
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Choosing a free lance translator
Obvious selection criteria:• Formal training in translation• Extensive experience
An indirect criterion:• Price
Thus, we expect a correlation between:• Qualification / quality• Qualification / price• Quality / price
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Translation Test
SampleUnsolicited applications received by Media
Langues in 2007-2008178 translators solicited
• 23 refused test (13%)• 82 did not return test (46%)• 73 returned test (41%)
FR>EN EN>FR
37 translators 36 translators
(U.K., France) (France, Belgium)
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Translator Background
EducationTranslation: 27Humanities and business: 29 (law, literature...)Sciences: 6 (medicine, engineering, sciences)
All freelancers
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Translation Quality Assesment
A research field with no consensus yet
Dominated by complex, multi-criteria measures
• SAE J2450 (wrong usage of glossary, syntactic error, omission, word structure, misspelling… 7 criteria)
• ATA’s certification exam (legibility, misunder-standing, mistranslation, omissions/additions, terminology, style... 22 criteria)
• SICAL scale/Gouadec studies: 675 error types (300 lexical, 375 syntactic)
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Usability in the translation industry
These tests are good for academic purposes or in specific QC situations
As a business, we need a practical means to screen a large number of translators
Excludes qualitative evaluations or time-consuming metrics
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Terminology-based assesment
Our assumption: the most discriminating translation quality criteria is terminology
Objective (unlike style)Critical and ubiquitous (technical, legal, business)On the difficulty scale, terminology is higher than
any other objective criteria such as spelling, grammar, omissions, typography…
A bad terminology can’t be proofreadMost often good terminology comes with good
grammar, style, etc. The reverse is not true.
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Test details.1
~18 terminology control points in each text
Error scoringWrong sense = -3 points Inacurate, but can be understood = -2 pointsCorrect but unusual = -1 points
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Examples
FR EN ERR
Produit bio Bio product -3
Sèche serviette électrique
Electric towel dryer -2
Écran de connexion Connection screen -1
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Test Details.2
5 tests of ~300 words eachTechnical, medical, legal, financial, generalNo time limit
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Caveats
Small sample size Sample not including fully-booked
translators Self-excluded translators: did not return or
refused test Possible differences between test levels Uncontrolled test conditions
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Prices
Average:0,088€ / source word (0,077€ / target word)
(Average price of translators who declined test: 0,091€ / source word)
Average:0,086€ / source word
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Score Distribution
100% of terms are -2 errors
15% of terms are -2 errors
30% of terms are -2 errors
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Score vs. Price
Price (€/ source word)
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Score vs. Age and Experience
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Scores vs. Education
77
82
66
Translation
Sciences
Humanities
T-test Humanities/ Translation : P = 0,05
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Price vs. Education
Translation
Sciences
Humanities0,083
0,094
0,088
T-test Humanities/ Translation : P = 0,29
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Hiring Criteria
Criterion <0,07€ 0,07-0,08€
0,08-0,09€
>0,09€ Transla-tion studies
Other studies
Score >70
23% 57% 75% 85% 78% 60%
Score >80
15% 30% 63% 44% 41% 34%
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85% of translators < 0.7€
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Conclusions
Translation studies do not guarantee high quality, but are a positive factor.
For companies, low rates should be a warning sign, but high rates do not guarantee high quality.
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Perspectives
Compare translation diplomas
Develop standard terminology-based tests
Direct measure Practical
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Acknowledgements
Aurélie Devynck, Master TSM (Traduction Spécialisée Multilingue), Université Lille 3