Research on Dictionary Use by Trainee Translators
(all of them in simultaneous, please)
By María del
Mar Sánchez Ramos
Ph.D.1,
University of Granada (Spain)
msramos@ugr.es
http://www.accurapid.com/journal/32dictuse.htm
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Abstract
 It
seems self-evident that dictionary consultation constitutes
an important stage in the process of translation.
Dictionaries provide translators with valuable information.
However, if we want our students to be efficient users
of this reference material, we need to understand
how they use these sources of vocabulary in their
work. Taking these two statements as starting points,
our paper reports on some of our research findings,
in which we discuss the results of an empirical research
project, conducted with translation students at University
Jaume I (Castellon, Spain), in order to establish
how they use different types of dictionaries. We comment
on the main objectives of our research and findings
regarding the types of dictionary used the frequency
of use, the main reasons for consultation, etc. The
conclusion is that our students do not take advantage
of the different dictionaries available. In addition,
the results suggest that they are not familiar with
electronic dictionaries—CD-ROM dictionaries and
online dictionaries.
1. Introduction
It is a generally held belief that
using dictionaries efficiently can provide valuable
benefits to trainee translators. However, as some
authors have stated (Roberts, 1992; Mackintosh, 1998;
Corpas et al., 2001), there has not been enough
empirical research to establish the profile of trainee
translators as dictionary users. In this paper, we
outline the results we obtained from an empirical
research carried out among students of Translation
Studies at University Jaume I (Castellon, Spain) in
order to understand the situation of our students.
In the first part of this paper, we briefly discuss
questions related to offline dictionaries (type of
dictionary, frequency of use, reasons for looking
up words, difficulties when using dictionaries, etc.).
In the second part, we look at to what point our students
are familiar with electronic reference tools, mainly
dictionaries in CD-ROM format and online dictionaries.
2. Dictionary use and trainee translators
Dictionaries, mainly monolingual dictionaries, are
one of the most important tools for the translator
due to their valuable lexical information. Nevertheless,
authors such as Fenner (1989) or Robers (1997) state
that dictionaries—and lexicography in general—occupy
a secondary position in Translation Studies:
[...] dictionary consultation is a
major component of the research phase of translation.
However, [...] the role of dictionaries and dictionary
use in this phase and, indeed all translation phases,
is underestimated and even denigrated. (Roberts, 1997)
To our knowledge, there has not been
enough research on trainee translators as dictionary
users. This research is absolutely essential if we
take into account that translators spend a substantial
amount of time and effort when consulting these sources
(Varantola, 1998). Furthermore, this research is relevant
if we want to know these students needs and teach
them how to use dictionaries efficiently.
Generally speaking, works related
to studying how students perceive and use dictionaries
have been focused on students or learners of second
languages2
(Mackinstosh, 1998; Varantola, 1998). We can take
as an example the different research projects and
theoretical works carried out by Baxter (1980) Bejoint
(1981), Hartmann (1983, 1999), Humblé (2001)
Luppescu and Day (1993), Campoy Cubillo (2001) or
Winkler (2001). As we have stated above, this research
hardly exists if we turn our attention to trainee
translators. However, there have been several attempts
such as the one carried out at the University of Ottawa,
where several researchers analysed the use of dictionaries,
mainly bilingual ones, on the part of trainee translators
in forward and reverse translation (Meyer, 1988, 1990;
Roberts, 1990). In line with the use of dictionaries
while translating, we can mention other studies such
as the ones developed by Starren and Thelen (1990),
Mackintosh (1998), Varantola (1998), Atkins and Varantola
(1998) Livbjerg and Mees (2003). Other works employ
questionnaires3
to elicit information instead of observing trainee
translators throughout the translation process (Corpas
et al., 2001).
According to Roberts (1992), and many
scholars, we as language users need to know how to
consult and use dictionaries effectively in order
to complete the translation process with success.
Moreover, the dictionary is often the first source
of information that professional and trainee translators
will use. Taking into account the enormous value and
benefits an appropriate dictionary use can provide
to trainee translators, it seems quite obvious that
we need more information about the relationship between
dictionaries and trainee translators. And we can access
this information through empirical researches on habits
of use, needs and different problems dictionaries
can cause to our students. In order to solve this
lack of research we describe and comment on the main
results of the study we conducted with 98 first and
second-year students at the Department of Translation
Studies at University Jaume I (Castellón, Spain).
3. Design of the empirical research
The main objective of this study,
which was carried out during the academic year 2002-2003,
was to draw the profile of a group of first and second
year translation students as dictionary users. In
fact, we wanted to know their needs and habits of
use. The general goals were the following ones:
- To gather information about dictionary
use (frequency of use, difficulties of the looking-up
process and
causes of these difficulties,
type of instruction about
dictionary skills, etc.).
- To know the trainee translators'
attitude towards different reference tools (printed
dictionaries, dictionaries on CD-ROM, and online
dictionaries).
- To evaluate previous instruction
on dictionary use.
3.1. Participants
98 first and second year translation students took
part into this research. They were enrolled in two
subjects from the degree course in Translation Studies:
Translation for beginners and Translation (intermediate
level). The main reason for our choice of these two
subjects was due to the fact that they belonged to
the first and second year of the degree course, and,
in that way, we would be able to know the starting
point of these students in terms of dictionary skills
and dictionary use instruction.
3.2. Methodology
We designed a questionnaire for trainee translators
(Sánchez Ramos, 2004). It was based on the
one developed by Hartmann (1999): "Case study:
The Exeter University survey of dictionary use".
Our questionnaire included 39 questions. We asked
students about types of dictionaries, frequency of
use, difficulties of use, instruction in dictionary
use, knowledge of electronic dictionaries, etc. We
specify questionnaire content in fig. 1. Finally,
we used the statistical program SPSS to analyse the
questionnaire data.
- Personal information (gender,
age)
- Academic information (course,
language combination)
- Beginning of dictionary
use (bilingual, English monolingual dictionary,
and Spanish monolingual dictionary)
- Dictionary most frequently
used
- Reason for acquiring a dictionary
- Use of appendices and usage
guides
- Frequency of use
- Aim of use
- Reasons for looking up words
- Main problems when looking
up words
- Main cause of difficulty
when looking up words
- Information about instruction
in dictionary use received
- Knowledge and use of electronic
dictionaries
|
Fig. 1
3.3. Analysis of results
The analysis of data provided valuable information
related to dictionary use by our students. In the
following, we present a brief description of some
of the results we obtained4.
- Type of dictionary. First, one of our aims was
to know the type of dictionary students mostly used.
Table 1 shows that 87.8% of our students used a
bilingual dictionary, followed by an English monolingual
dictionary (10.2%) and only 2% selected a Spanish
monolingual dictionary. We have to point out that
the use of an English monolingual dictionary increases
in advanced courses (table 2). This fact, that is,
the increasing number of students using monolingual
dictionaries in L1 and L2, has been highlighted
by other scholars (Battengburg, 1984; Corpas et
al. 2001, 246).
|
Most
used type of dictionary |
|
| Bilingual
dictionary |
87.8% |
| English
monolingual dictionary |
10.2% |
| Spanish
monolingual dictionary |
2% |
Table 1
|
Most used type of dictionary |
Translation
(beginners) |
Translation
(intermediate
level) |
| Bilingual
dictionary |
91.8% |
83.7% |
| English
monolingual dictionary |
8.2% |
12.2% |
| Spanish
monolingual dictionary |
——— |
4.1% |
Table 2
We also asked students about the
specific types of dictionaries they used (table
3). Regarding bilingual dictionaries, students selected
the Oxford bilingual dictionary (62.2%) and
the Collins bilingual dictionary (58.2%).
Other reference tools such as Cambridge,
Vox, Sopena, Langenscheit,
Harrap or Longman obtained very low
percentages. Concerning English monolingual dictionaries,
students again showed preferences for one published
by Oxford (64.3%) and Collins (29.6%).
Finally, in the case of the Spanish monolingual
dictionaries, there was no doubt about their favourite:
the Spanish dictionary edited by the Royal Spanish
Academy of Language (68.4%).
- Use of appendices and introductions.
We exposed our subjects to a list of options including
the most common information appendices shown in
the different dictionaries. As other studies focused
on learners of languages have mentioned (Hartman,
1999; Bejoint, 1981), above all the options offered,
trainee translators generally used the list of abbreviations,
list of irregular verbs and grammatical information.
| Appendices
and introductions |
List
of abbreviations |
List
of irregular verbs |
Grammatical
information |
| Bilingual
dictionary |
31.6% |
28.6% |
30.6% |
| English
monolingual dictionary |
28.6% |
30.6% |
30.6% |
| Spanish
monolingual dictionary |
38.8% |
——- |
37.8% |
Table 3
It is also interesting to note that
information about usage guide occupied one of the
last positions. This suggests that our students
hardly take advantage of these guides, which is
not a very encouraging result if we take into account
that they provide some useful information (organization
of information, pronunciation guide, etc.). Familiarity
with usage guides could produce an immediate effect
in both understanding and time reduction of the
looking-up process.
- Frequency of use. Generally, our students
used the bilingual dictionary every day and the
English and Spanish monolingual dictionaries once
a week. As table 4 shows, the more advanced the
level, the less the frequency of use. It is also
important to point out the percentage of students
that used dictionaries less than once a week. This
fact reflects the autonomy that students begin to
experience and, probably, the use of other strategies
(i.e. use of context) to solve translation problems.
| Bilingual
dictionary |
Translation
for beginners |
Translation
(intermediate level) |
| Every
day |
70.8% |
59.2% |
| Twice/three
times a day |
16.7% |
6.1% |
| Once
a week |
12.5% |
28.6% |
| Less
than once a week |
——- |
6.1% |
Table 4
| English
monolingual dictionary |
Translation
for beginners |
Translation
(intermediate level) |
| Every
day |
26.5% |
20.4% |
| Twice/three
times a day |
8.2% |
6.1% |
| Once
a week |
51% |
49% |
| Less
than once a week |
14.3% |
24.5% |
Table 5
| Spanish
monolingual dictionary |
Translation
for beginners |
Translation
(intermediate level) |
| Everyday |
40.8% |
36.7% |
| Twice/three
times a day |
4.1% |
4.1% |
| Once
a week |
42.9% |
44.9% |
| Less
than once a week |
12.2% |
14.3% |
Table 6
- Aim of use. Translation students employed
the bilingual dictionary mainly for direct translation
(44.9%) and reading comprehension (33.7%). Percentages
for writing, speaking and reverse translation were
very low. Results for the English monolingual dictionary
were similar. And, finally, the Spanish monolingual
dictionary was used for productive purposes (38.8%),
direct translation (27.6%), and reading comprehension
(25.5%).
| Bilingual
dictionary |
% |
| Writing |
17.3 |
| Reading
comprehension |
33.7 |
| Listening |
1 |
| Translation
into the mother tongue |
44.9 |
| Translation
into the foreign language |
3.1 |
Table 7
| English
monolingual dictionary |
% |
| Writing |
26.5 |
| Speaking |
1 |
| Reading
comprehension |
28.6 |
| Translation
into the mother tongue |
41.8 |
| Translation
into the foreign language |
2 |
Table 8
| Spanish
monolingual dictionary |
% |
| Writing |
38.8 |
| Speaking |
3.1 |
| Reading
comprehension |
25.5 |
| Translation
into the mother tongue |
2 |
| Translation
into the foreign language |
27.6 |
Table 9
- Reasons for looking up words. We offered
several options which students had to rank in terms
of priority. It should be noted that our final results
are similar to those obtained by Mackintosh (1998)
or Corpas et al. (2001). Thus, our students used
the bilingual dictionary to look for equivalent
terms (80.6%), spelling (25.5%), and examples (18.4%).
Concerning the English monolingual dictionary, we
observed that trainee translators looked for definitions
(74.5%) and spelling (22.4%). And, finally, the
Spanish monolingual dictionary was used to look
for definitions (60.2%), spelling (30.6%), and usage
labels (33.7%).
- Difficulties of use when looking up words.
Our questionnaire also explored the difficulties
students experienced when looking up words. The
first problem they mentioned was that they did not
find words they looked for (31.6%). Secondly, students
complained that it was extremely difficult to find
the specific information they were looking for (32.7%).
And, finally, trainee translators were unable to
understand definitions (26.5%).
- Reasons for difficulties. It is worth
noting that students attributed the bulk of their
difficulties to the dictionary itself. In fact,
our students believed that these problems were mainly
due to their own dictionary (45.9%) and very few
considered these problems related to other reasons
such as their lack of familiarity with the dictionary
(25.5%), lack of dictionary skills (10.3%) or unclear
layout of the dictionary (12.2%).
- Instructions in dictionary use. Closely
related to the previous questions was the one concerning
explicit training or instruction in how to use a
dictionary. When commenting on instruction in dictionary
use, it turned out that most students had not been
taught how to use dictionaries (45.9%) and among
those answering "yes" only 2% had received
exhaustive instruction.
The second part of the questionnaire aimed to ascertain
if our students used other types of reference material,
specifically electronic tools. In the following
paragraphs, we will describe some of the results
we obtained.
- Electronic reference tools. We wanted
to know if our students were familiar with electronic
dictionaries, one of the tools we believe essential
as supporting material for professional and trainee
translators. In general terms, students were not
aware of any electronic dictionaries on CD-ROM:
bilingual dictionary (70.4%), English monolingual
dictionary (78.6%) and Spanish monolingual dictionary
(60.2%). In contrast, trainee translators were familiar
with on-line electronic reference tools. Most students
(61.2%) knew online bilingual dictionaries (Cambridge
dictionaries online, Babylon, Vox).
This fact could also be applied to English monolingual
dictionaries (41.8%)—Oxford, Merriam-Webster,
Wordmisht, American Heritage Dictionary—and
the Spanish monolingual ones (64.3%)—Spanish
Royal Academy dictionary and Vox. Nevertheless,
these results were not so encouraging if we take
into account that our students did not consider
themselves "good dictionary users" (only
4.1% defined themselves as good users).
- Advantages and disadvantages of electronic
dictionaries. In terms of advantages and disadvantages
of electronic dictionaries, trainee translators
highlighted quick access, accessibility, and usefulness
as the main advantages and they mentioned lack of
skills in using online dictionaries as the main
disadvantage.
4. Conclusions
In this paper we have given an account of the study
we carried out with 98 trainee translators to discover
their profile as dictionary users. It was our main
objective to highlight the relationship between dictionaries
and trainee translators due to the fact that we are
aware of the importance of using dictionaries efficiently
during the translation process. On the whole, our
results confirm the general and theoretical assumptions
obtained by other scholars about dictionary use and
trainee translators (Mackintosh, 1998; Roberts, 1990;
Varantola, 1998; Corpas et al., 2001), which enhance
the view that our students need more training and,
therefore, instruction in dictionary use. Up to this
point, we have to comment that this research is a
sample of what happened with our students, that is,
these results cannot be extended to all students of
translation. Nevertheless, in our opinion, we believe
these results can contribute to our knowledge about
trainee translators as dictionary users. To summarize
the results of this questionnaire, we can point out
two general ideas and conclude that:
- Our students need instruction in
dictionary skills
- Our students need to become familiar
with electronic dictionaries and other reference
material
Bearing these conclusions in mind,
we hope to eventually move to further research by
administering similar questionnaires to a more representative
sample of trainee translators in order to gain knowledge
of the general profile of students of translation
and reflect on the pedagogical implications of developing
dictionary skills among our students.
Notes 1
This article is part of a research project (Ref: BFF2003-02561)
entitled "Evaluación y Desarrollo de la
Competencia Léxica a través de Internet
en la Titulación de Filología Inglesa".
This project is financed by the Spanish Ministry of
Science and Technology.
2
Nesi (2000) describes in detail the main research
work carried out about dictionary use and learners
of languages. This quantity of academic work proves
that this type of research is a well-developed area
of study in this field.
3
Despite the fact that we should treat the use of questionnaires
to elicit information with caution (Hatherall, 1994),
we believe that they are adequate tools for providing
preliminary data of a concrete research.
4
The complete questionnaire can be obtained from Sánchez
Ramos (2004)
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