Translation process research

Abstract

The term 'translation process' has many folds of meanings, which may be grouped into internal process and external process. When translation researchers discuss memory and representation in translation, for instance, they refer to the internal process; when they investigate translators' observable behaviour (e.g., revising), they mean the external process. There are three basic drivers for the evolution of process-oriented translation studies, aside from its own steady growth: introduction of research methods and techniques from other disciplines; introduction of theories, perspectives and concepts from other disciplines; and the dynamic interaction between translation theory and emerging translation practice (e.g., adoption of translation technology). According to Halverson, cognitive perspectives on translation and interpreting basically follow the developments of cognitive science. Translation process research, especially in its early stage, tends to describe translation as a problem-solving and decision-making process, whose characteristics have been regarded as a central concern in translation process research (TPR).