Using CAT Tools in Freelance Translation: Insights from a Case Study

127 Pages·2021·3.89 MB·english

by  Paulina Pietrzak and Michał Kornacki

Using CAT Tools in Freelance
Translation
This book explores the impact of applying computer-assisted (CAT) tools
in freelance translation toward better understanding translators’ strategies,
preferences, and challenges in using new technologies and identifying areas
of enhancement in translator training.
The volume offers a brief overview of the latest developments in technology
in translation, examining such issues as the effect on the translation process
and the dynamics of the translator-technology interaction. Drawing on
data from a study with active translators in Poland, Pietrzak and Kornacki
examine the underlying factors underpinning translators’ lack of engagement
with these tools, including such issues as prevailing preconceptions around
technology and limited knowledge hindering the most efficacious use of these
resources and the subsequent impact on translator identity. Taken together,
the book brings together these insights to help pinpoint freelance translators’
needs more effectively and adapt training programmes accordingly.
The volume will be of interest to scholars in translation studies with an
interest in process and technology as well as active translators.
Paulina Pietrzak is Assistant Professor of Linguistics and, since 2008, has
been affiliated with the University of Łódź, Poland.
Michał Kornacki is Assistant Professor of Linguistics, affiliated with the
University of Łódź, Poland.

Using CAT Tools in
Freelance Translation
Insights from a Case Study
Paulina Pietrzak and
Michał Kornacki
First published 2021
by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2021 Taylor & Francis
The right of Paulina Pietrzak and Michał Kornacki to be identified as
authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections
77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN: 978-0-367-64675-2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-12576-1 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Contents
List of Tables vii
List of Figures viii
Introduction 1
Overview of the Book 1
Introduction 2
1 Contemporary Freelance Translation Market 3
Overview of the Chapter 3
1.1 Freelance Translation as a Profession 3
1.2 Forms of Employment 5
2 Application of Technology in the Process of Translation 13
Overview of the Chapter 13
2.1 Typology of Translation Technology 13
2.2 Translator-Technology (TT) Interaction Modes 32
3 Freelance Translator Profile 38
Overview of the Chapter 38
3.1 Freelance Translator Competence 38
3.2 Users and Non-Users of CAT Tools 41
3.3 Technological Toolkit 43
4 Technological Evolution in Translation 46
Overview of the Chapter 46
4.1 Key Developments in CAT Technology and Their Effects
on the Translator’s Work 46
vi Contents
4.2 Negative Impact of CAT Technology on the Process and
Product 50
4.3 Cognitive Aspects of TT Interaction 53
4.4 Impact of CAT Technology and TT Interaction on
Translator’s Metacognition 54
4.5 Technology-Related Anxiety in Freelance Translation 58
5 Current Trends in the Use of CAT Tools in Freelance
Translation 66
Overview of The Chapter 66
5.1 The Methodology Behind the Study on CAT Users
and Non-Users 66
5.2 Attitudes Towards the Study 70
6 Analysis of the Findings 78
Overview of the Chapter 78
6.1 Sample Characteristics 78
6.2 Usage 80
6.3 Machine Translation 82
6.4 Income 83
6.5 CAT Tools Evaluation 86
6.6 Reasons for Using or Not Using CAT Tools 94
7 Discussion 97
Overview of the Chapter 97
7.1 Research Findings 97
7.2 Reluctance to Use CAT Technology 100
7.3 Implications for Translator Training 102
7.4 Implications for Translation Software Developers 104
8 Conclusion 107
References 109
Index 117
Tables
2.1 A typology of translation and localisation technology 14
2.2 Advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing graphic
editing 28
6.1 The use of CAT tools and work experience 79
6.2 The use of specific CAT tools 81
6.3 The level of remuneration of CAT and non-CAT translators 85
6.4 Evaluation of CAT tools and the number of languages used
by translators in their work vs the rate 85
6.5 CAT tools evaluation 87
6.6 Results of exploratory factor analysis 89
6.7 Descriptive statistics for CAT tools evaluation indicators
in CAT users and non-users 91
6.8 The number of languages used by translators vs CAT
evaluation 93
6.9 Answers to the question: “Which phrase best reflects
your opinion on CAT tools?” 93
6.10 Combination of CAT selection criteria 95
6.11 Combination of criteria for not using CAT tools 95
Figures
2.1 Typology of translation technology 17
6.1 Comparison of rates for the translation (in PLN per word) 84
6.2 Scree chart for the CAT tools evaluation scale 88
6.3 Comparison of CAT tools evaluation indicators 90
6.4 Overall CAT evaluation by CAT usage and age 92
6.5 Overall CAT evaluation by CAT usage and work
experience 92
Introduction
Overview of the Book
Since the advance of computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools, technol-
ogy has exerted a significant impact on the translator’s workflow. The book
attempts to explore the technological evolution in translation and its effects
on the process of translation. It offers a classification of translation technol-
ogy and discusses various modes of translator-technology (TT) interaction.
The authors delineate the profile of the contemporary freelance translator
and advocate for the implementation of the “technological toolkit” (i.e., the
basic set of instrumental skills and technical abilities related to information
technology) in the translation classroom. Given that translation technology
affects the translator’s work style, the book touches upon the impact that TT
interaction can exert on the translator’s self-concept. It also discusses the
notion of anxiety related to the use of translation technology.
The authors investigate the application of CAT tools in freelance transla-
tion and analyse how the actual usage and preferences differ among pro-
fessional translators. With the aim of understanding the demographics and
attitudes of freelance translators, a study has been conducted on both users
and non-users of CAT software in Poland. Given the limited – yet to a large
extent universal – scope of the study, the Polish context well illustrates why
a great number of professional translators still refrain from using CAT tools,
while others fail to use them efficiently or do not make use of all the fea-
tures available to better address their clients’ expectations. The findings of
the study help to identify the needs of the translation market and improve
strategies used in translator training.
The scope of the book is of immediate concern in the contemporary
translation market encompassing rapid advances in translation technology.
The findings demonstrated in the study help to determine the actual tenden-
cies and mechanisms in the use of CAT tools. The analysis of the results
elucidates the reasons for the apparent reluctance towards those tools in