Creativity and simultaneous interpretation—the two shall never meet?

• Autores: Daejin Kim, Hyang-ok Lim
• Localización: International Journal of Bilingualism: interdisciplinary studies of multilingual behaviour, ISSN 1367-0069, Vol. 23, Nº. 6, 2019, págs. 1316-1332
• Idioma: inglés
• DOI: 10.1177/1367006918786472
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• Resumen

  • Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions:

    This study examines the cognitive nature of Korean–English conference interpreters by analyzing the creativity scores of professional interpreters and interpreter students and exploring the cause of the differences between them.

    Design/methodology/approach:

    We conducted the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) on professional interpreters and interpreter students. The main scores and sub scores of the two groups were compared and analyzed. The quantitative results were complemented by selective in-depth interviews.

    Data and analysis:

    Forty-five subjects (21 professional interpreters and 24 interpreter students) participated in the study. The data from the TTCT main and subordinate scores were obtained. An independent t-test between the two groups was conducted. The creative style scores were compared to explain the differences between the two groups.

    Findings/conclusions:

    Contrary to our expectations, the creative verbal scores of the professional interpreters were significantly lower than the interpreter students’ scores. We also found other distinct differences between the two groups regarding several aspects of creativity including styles. We speculate that the different creative scores may reflect the impact that many years of professional interpretation experience have had on the cognition of the conference interpreters.

    Originality:

    The current study is a first attempt to explore the creative scores of professional interpreters and interpreter students with an analysis of the implications of the cognitive aspects of Korean–English conference interpreters.

    Significance/implications:

    Our study suggests that the difference in the creative scores of professional interpreters and interpreter students may be key to understanding the unique cognitive features of Korean–English conference interpreters. We surmise that the involvement of particular functions of the brain together with the professional experience of the interpreters caused the difference.