Improving the Emotional Intelligence of Translators A Roadmap for an Experimental Training Intervention Séverine Hubscher-Davidson Caroline Lehr Palgrave Studies in Translating and Interpreting Series Editor Margaret Rogers School of Literature and Languages University of Surrey Guildford, UK This series examines the crucial role which translation and interpreting in their myriad forms play at all levels of communication in today’s world, from the local to the global. Whilst this role is being increasingly recog- nised in some quarters (for example, through European Union legisla- tion), in others it remains controversial for economic, political and social reasons. The rapidly changing landscape of translation and interpreting practice is accompanied by equally challenging developments in their aca- demic study, often in an interdisciplinary framework and increasingly reflecting commonalities between what were once considered to be sepa- rate disciplines. The books in this series address specific issues in both translation and interpreting with the aim not only of charting but also of shaping the discipline with respect to contemporary practice and research. More information about this series at http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14574 Séverine Hubscher- Davidson Caroline Lehr Improving the Emotional Intelligence of Translators A Roadmap for an Experimental Training Intervention Séverine Hubscher-Davidson Caroline Lehr School of Languages and Applied Institute of Translation and Linguistics Interpreting The Open University Zurich University of Applied Sciences Milton Keynes, UK Winterthur, Switzerland Palgrave Studies in Translating and Interpreting ISBN 978-3-030-88859-6 ISBN 978-3-030-88860-2 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88860-2 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 This work is subject to copyright. 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The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland C ontents 1 Introduction 1 References 5 2 An Interdisciplinary Framework 9 References 13 3 The Importance of Emotional Intelligence Skills for Translators 17 References 19 4 Personality and EI Research 21 References 24 5 Increasing Emotional Intelligence with Interventions 29 References 37 6 Proposed Method 43 6.1 Participants 44 6.2 Measures 45 6.3 EI Intervention and Procedure 48 6.4 Silent Coaching Exercise 51 6.5 Applying Cognitive Behavioural Techniques 54 v vi CONTENTS 6.6 Reappraising Boredom 59 6.7 A Focus on Values and Personal Strengths 61 References 65 7 Other Aspects to Consider 73 References 77 8 Conclusion and Future Directions 79 References 82 Appendix 85 References 89 Index 107 L t ist of abLes Table 6.1 The silent coaching exercise process 53 Table 6.2 The ABCDEF model 57 Table 6.3 Translator using the ABCDEF model 58 Table 6.4 Five strengths and actions 63 vii CHAPTER 1 Introduction Over the last decade, significant and rapid changes have taken place in the world of work in terms of employee productivity, management proce- dures, technology, and a variety of other areas that make up the workplace we know today. Amongst other findings, a survey of 1049 employed pro- fessionals conducted in 2016 revealed that employees are less connected to their companies than they used to be, that they are not always clear how their skills connect to their company’s future success, and that over half of the employees surveyed feel that workplace stress and anxiety interferes with their daily lives at least moderately (Smyth, 2016). As young people enter the workforce today, they worry about the future of work due to the rapidly changing economy and the unstable and shifting work opportuni- ties, all of which pose significant challenges to their emotional and rela- tional wellbeing (Di Fabio & Kenny, 2019; Di Fabio et al., 2016). In the language industry, professional translators have been shown to suffer from occupational stress as a result of unfair treatment from agen- cies, poor remuneration, and uncertainty about the future (Courtney & Phelan, 2019). Surveys reveal that companies are increasing investments in machine translation (MT) technology to continuously improve the quality of outputs, in a bid to optimise speed and production (Slator, 2019). Freelance translators often lack feedback from clients with whom they are rarely in direct contact, something which often makes it difficult © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature 1 Switzerland AG 2021 S. Hubscher-Davidson, C. Lehr, Improving the Emotional Intelligence of Translators, Palgrave Studies in Translating and Interpreting, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88860-2_1 2 S. HUBSCHER-DAVIDSON AND C. LEHR for them to establish relationships and maintain motivation. Findings from job design research, however, show the advantages of focusing on rela- tional characteristics in the workplace rather than on mere task structures (Grant, 2007) and Reich and Hershcovis (2011) highlight the increasing importance of developing and maintaining positive interpersonal relation- ships in the workplace during times of uncertainty, as this has been shown to reduce employee stress levels and increase their job satisfaction. Unfortunately, recent developments in the language industry have often served to isolate translators, adding to existing high pressure and expecta- tions in terms of productivity. Technological developments in particular have had an impact on trans- lators’ work processes and wellbeing. With the substantial progress in language-related artificial intelligence in recent years, we are witnessing a shift in tasks for which machine translation technology can be used, with more texts being post-edited (TAUS, 2010). Intensive interactions with computers and language technology tools are believed to pose unique threats to linguists’ health and welfare (Ehrensberger-Dow, 2017). Continuous progress will lead to new kinds of translation workplaces and human-machine interactions that have never existed before. Workplaces in the language industry will thus undergo considerable changes in the future. For language professionals, this will require that they deal with change and uncertainty, but also that they constantly adapt to new task requirements and changing competence profiles (Massey, 2020). While new tasks will emerge where humans closely interact with machines, other aspects of language work that can (currently) only be done by humans, such as creativity, will continue to require highly qualified and versatile individuals. As a result of the abovementioned developments, translators can expe- rience a variety of emotions at work, such as anxiety linked to competition, to MT developments, to losing their agency, and to the idea of being ‘reduced’ to mere post-editors (e.g., O’Brien & Conlan, 2018). Emotions are triggered by internal or external stimuli that are of major significance to the individual (Scherer, 2000). In the translator’s workplace, emotions can be elicited by the text that is translated and/or by the translator’s working conditions. Emotions can be related to actually occurring events, but also to remembered or imagined stimuli, such as past experiences or worrying about the potential positive or negative outcomes of one’s actions (Leary, 2015). Emotions are associated with specific cognitive and motivational processes which can influence the ways that translators