| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | Poll: Have you ever been asked to do back translation? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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Rolf Kern 
Switzerland
Local time: 06:35
English to German
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In memoriam | | Yes, as part of a small research project | Mar 10, 2015 |
Very interesting, and very valid in many contexts.
| | | | Anthony Baldwin
United States
Local time: 00:35
Portuguese to English
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And I've always been informed of the nature of the work before beginning it.
It's to ensure the quality of a translation, by translating it back to the original/source language, and then comparing the back-translation to the original text.
I'm also often asked to comment on the differences after completion of the back translation.
Like Sonia, most of the back translations I've done have been in clinical trials, informed consent, explanation and documentation for the tria... See more And I've always been informed of the nature of the work before beginning it.
It's to ensure the quality of a translation, by translating it back to the original/source language, and then comparing the back-translation to the original text.
I'm also often asked to comment on the differences after completion of the back translation.
Like Sonia, most of the back translations I've done have been in clinical trials, informed consent, explanation and documentation for the trials, etc.
[Edited at 2015-03-10 12:01 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 00:35
English to Spanish
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| Can't recall I was ever asked | Mar 10, 2015 |
...to do a back translation.
I didn't know backtranslations were common currency in pharma and other industries. As a matter of course, I would refuse to perform back translations.
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Al Zaid
United States
English to Spanish
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| Too much work for nothing | Mar 10, 2015 |
Chris S wrote:
I cannot see how back-translation can ever be as good as having a couple of native translators check the original translation in the normal manner. It's a flawed process.
[Edited at 2015-03-10 09:09 GMT]
I've never been asked to do a back-translation (at least not expressly) and I'm not really aware of the cost implications.
For one, I think it's not cost-effective. Personally I would charge a normal translation rate in any case, so the client would be paying twice for the same thing.
On the other hand, it CAN'T be better than having the translation checked against the original.
| | | | Vi Pukite
United States
Local time: 21:35
Latvian to English
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| Yes, and not just for medical/pharma ... | Mar 10, 2015 |
but also market research surveys. It all depends on how the entire back translation process is managed and the quality of the translators, just as in "regular" translation. Done well, it can be extremely effective and very interesting, especially the reconciliation.
| | | | | Yes - and there are times this is very useful | Mar 10, 2015 |
What I'm talking about here is in medical questionnaires about for instance adverse effects, translated into many languages, often the only way to catch the wrong choice of register for a word/or ambiguity is to backtranslate into the source language (an inelegant translation where words are the point, more than the deeper meaning of the text).
It is an obligatory step in certain kinds of medical trials - but the back translation is used for quality assurance, not to be published.
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Common in med/pharma, to be sure that red buttons did not become green and that active ingredient X did not became Y, etc.
But also in marketing if the client (communication agency) wants to know what the translated slogan or advertisement exactly means.
It is an extra quality step for translations which could have a high impact.
Backtranslation is always litteral and even word-for-word, no litterature or style required here.
I am sufficient bi... See more Common in med/pharma, to be sure that red buttons did not become green and that active ingredient X did not became Y, etc.
But also in marketing if the client (communication agency) wants to know what the translated slogan or advertisement exactly means.
It is an extra quality step for translations which could have a high impact.
Backtranslation is always litteral and even word-for-word, no litterature or style required here.
I am sufficient bilingual to translate in both directions, but of course one should be able to write and to transmit a meaning into his source language. ▲ Collapse
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| this discussion in itself is a case in point | Mar 10, 2015 |
When I read all the appalled comments "I refused, i would never" it is clear that these people had some interpretation of the word backtranslation that was on the side of what this actually means. It would have been interesting have these people translate the question in this poll into their own languages, and then have a backtranslation done - back into English, to see what the problem is.
| | | | | I had a regular client who never sent anything else | Mar 10, 2015 |
For several years one of my favourite clients only sent back translations.
She even phoned me once to say I was not to open her mail - she had just sent the wrong file... But most of the time we exchanged business-like mails and friendly comments. As others have mentioned, you have to know it is a back translation, and comment or preferably reproduce any apparent problem, not just fix it!
But of course, these were always Danish into English, the way I normally translate... See more For several years one of my favourite clients only sent back translations.
She even phoned me once to say I was not to open her mail - she had just sent the wrong file... But most of the time we exchanged business-like mails and friendly comments. As others have mentioned, you have to know it is a back translation, and comment or preferably reproduce any apparent problem, not just fix it!
But of course, these were always Danish into English, the way I normally translate. I have done back translations for other clients too. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Only as a part of transcreation | Mar 10, 2015 |
As some other colleagues have noticed here, word-to-word back translation is often a part of transcreation process.
As for me, I always deliver word-to-word back translation together with the transcreated slogan, even if a client forgets to ask me about it.
| | | | Alex Lago
Spain
Local time: 06:35
English to Spanish
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Hege Jakobsen Lepri wrote:
When I read all the appalled comments "I refused, i would never" it is clear that these people had some interpretation of the word backtranslation that was on the side of what this actually means. It would have been interesting have these people translate the question in this poll into their own languages, and then have a backtranslation done - back into English, to see what the problem is.
Was thinking exactly the same thing, I was actually quite surprised at how many people had not idea what it is and how many had the wrong idea of what it is.
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Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 00:35
English to Spanish
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Hege Jakobsen Lepri wrote:
When I read all the appalled comments "I refused, i would never" it is clear that these people had some interpretation of the word backtranslation that was on the side of what this actually means. It would have been interesting have these people translate the question in this poll into their own languages, and then have a backtranslation done - back into English, to see what the problem is.
I am sorry, Hege, I beg to differ. You are making some out-on-a-limb assumptions:
1) Translators who say they refuse to do backtranslations don't understand what it is.
2) Translators who don't do backtranslations all share the same misunderstanding.
3) This misunderstanding would be solved for these translators if they perform a backtranslation of the question.
3.a) Following the logic on 3 above, translators who refuse to do backtranslations don't understand what it is and are presumably not competent enough to understand it unless they do it.
4) These translators have a problem with backtranslation that should be resolved if they only did a backtranslation.
Perhaps you'd like to think about what you wrote and rewrite it with a little more care and respect.
| | | | | Back Translation | Mar 10, 2015 |
I have done it once for a local company (in Australia) that produces medical and surgical equipment. My colleague had translated it into French for their export material, then I was required to back translate it because it is apparently a requirement of the government's Therapeutic Goods Administration here. Presumably they need to see that the descriptions of the Australian medical gear being exported are above board.
| | | | Félicien Sirois
United States
Local time: 23:35
Member
Italian to English
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I'm amazed that so few responding translators here have had experience with BT. In the pharma industry it's a very common practice. 50% of my workload is actually typically back translation work.
What seems to be lost on most of the people replying here, is a BT is not an instance of someone telling you to retranslate your work on any given project back into the source text (that would be absolutely foolish since we only work INTO our native languages, right people?).
R... See more I'm amazed that so few responding translators here have had experience with BT. In the pharma industry it's a very common practice. 50% of my workload is actually typically back translation work.
What seems to be lost on most of the people replying here, is a BT is not an instance of someone telling you to retranslate your work on any given project back into the source text (that would be absolutely foolish since we only work INTO our native languages, right people?).
Rather, you are translating a "forward translation" produced by someone else back into your own language to verify that the content of the original document has been successfully captured and translated into the new language. Much as described in the Stanley Kubrick reference above ("I am Gunnery Sergeant Hartmann..." LOL).
Unfortunately it's hardly a perfect process, and it's designed to serve clients who have no working knowledge of a language, and as such it is rife with problems, especially when managed by project managers who have no clue what they're doing (I can't tell you how many PMs I've actually had to educate on the process, despite the fact THEY were asking ME to perform the task (and asking me to do so in an erroneous manner)).
Needless to say, I soon realized those weren't serious clients... ▲ Collapse
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