Providing general criteria for translator recruitment through a full investigation of the requisites Iranian translation offices apply

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the criteria used by Iranian managers of translation offices when recruiting translators. The study also attempted to identify the requisites that are considered important not only for translation offices but also for other organizations responsible for hiring translators, such as publishing companies and affiliated organizations. To achieve these objectives, a questionnaire consisting of 15 items was designed using a five-point Likert scale. The questionnaire was based on the ten requisites proposed by Sofer (2013)for professional translators, as well as five additional factors suggested by the researcher, including sex, marital status, higher education, responsibility and punctuality, and favoritism. These additional factors were included to enhance the validity of the study. The results of the study indicated that the most important requisites for translation office managers were responsibility and punctuality, familiarity with electronic tools, a thorough knowledge of both the source and target languages, an in-depth understanding of both the source and target cultures, higher education in Translation Studies, a good translation speed, and the ability to translate in multiple areas of knowledge. Furthermore, a chi-square (X2) test was conducted to determine the significance of the relationship between each item and the managers. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between the managers and items 2 (familiarity with both the source and target cultures), 7 (developing a good translation speed), 9 (familiarity with electronic tools), and 15 (the impact of favoritism on recruiting a translator). However, the relationship between the managers and the remaining items was not found to be significant.