Emotional Intelligence and Translator’s Diction in Stressful Situations: a Case Study of Translating Political Texts

The Brain undoubtedly could be called the main processor and the most important factor in translation. It has been the subject of rigorous studies by specialists to find out how it works and how it is influenced? Controlling, adjusting and neutralizing negative surrounding or blocking factors seem to be a very redeeming job. Emotional Intelligence (EI and also EQ) -which involves various psychological constructs- could be perceived as one of those factors; therefore, the current study investigated the tentative link between EI and translation. For this purpose, 41 students completed the Bar-On EI test, (the emotional quotient inventory EQ-I) and translated a political text twice. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA to examine whether individuals with higher EQ could control their emotions to select the exact equivalent while translating under political pressure. The analysis of the data revealed that there is a significant relationship between EQ and the accuracy of translation; translators with higher EQ can regulate their emotions well and select the closest equivalent for the word, no matter what would be the consequence of telling the truth. It was proved that translators with lower overall EQ translate more conservatively to avoid the potentially undesirable consequences. The results help understand the relationship between students’ EQ and the accuracy of translation.