Published on September 19, 2024

IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

SEPTEMBER 2024       VOLUME 67      NUMBER 3       IEPCBU      (ISSN 0361-1434)

INTEGRATIVE LITERATURE REVIEWS

The Evolutionary Convergence of Technical Communication and Translation: An Integrative Literature Review of Scholarship from 2000 to 2022, G. Palumbo and A. H. Duin

This study sought to identify the evolutionary convergence of technical communication and translation by analyzing published academic studies. We conducted an integrative literature review for the period extending from 2000 to 2022. The themes of field convergence and localization are represented consistently throughout the period. The need for virtual team collaboration accelerated during the second decade, largely because of online collaborative projects between the two fields. Technology was the focus of only a minority of papers. Exploratory use of visualization tools showed that there still is a lack of overlap. The study shows thematic convergence in scholarship in the two disciplines. Future studies might gain from using network visualizations to illustrate interaction between studies.

Setting Foundations: An Integrative Literature Review at the Intersections of Technical and Professional Communication and Translation Studies, A. Petts, S. Veeramoothoo, and M. Verzella

To understand how the fields of technical and professional communication (TPC) and translation studies (TS) are converging, we conducted a staged integrative literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters in the two fields. Next, we performed a thematic analysis to investigate patterns across the literature. Our analysis suggests five themes that help connect research and practice in TPC and TS, including pedagogical approaches for training students for careers in international technical communication and translation; collaborations among practitioners in both fields; questions of social justice, language diversity, and language access; available resources and tools; and the role of culture in translation. We conclude by advocating for a stronger integration of the two fields and by suggesting how to build on the foundations of this research.

Technology-Powered Multilingual Professional and Technical Writing: An Integrative Literature Review of Landmark and the Latest Writing Assistance Tools, L. Sanz-Valdiviezo

This integrative literature review examines scholarly publications to identify writing assistance tools that may serve international and multilingual professionals in different fields. Tools are characterized by working languages, domains, writing stage of application, functionalities, underlying technologies, origin, and type of access.The analysis reveals that most tools are multilingual, scarce in terms of domains of specialization, and designed to be used in the writing stage, rather than pre- or post-writing. Natural language generation, translation, implementation of suggestions, and integration into other software are the most common functionalities, often in combination with others.

RESEARCH ARTICLES

Positive Evaluation in the Translation of Online Promotional Discourse in the Cheese Industry, B. Labrador and N. Ramón

Empirical data have been extracted from Online Cheese Descriptions (OCD), a semantically tagged English-Spanish corpus, and classified using the Appraisal Framework into the subcategories of appreciation, judgment, affect, and graduation. Tests of statistical significance have revealed cross-linguistic differences, mainly in appreciation, thus leading to a qualitative analysis. The findings also include a large inventory of all evaluative items that express appreciation for cheeses in both languages and general guidelines for translators. This multilayer corpus-based analysis has yielded relevant data that can be used to enhance the second-language writing and translation processes required for marketing cheese in English and Spanish, thus supporting international professionals in their communication in multilingual contexts.

The Audit Report in Contrast: Developing Corpus-Informed Applications for Spanish Users of English for Business Purposes, M. Izquierdo

This study analyzes the audit report business genre to develop applications of language use for English for Business Purposes learners. An ad-hoc comparable corpus of authentic AuRs was compiled, tagged at the rhetorical level and browsed following a top-down procedure. First, the macrostructure of the AuR was pinned down and then compared cross-linguistically in search of similarities and differences. Then auditors’ self-mention markers and verbs referring to their tasks were examined. Minor differences were observed at the rhetorical level, as opposed to the findings at the level of grammatical realization. A twofold proposal is made to transfer descriptive knowledge to an English for Specific Purposes educational setting and to the workplace.

CASE STUDY

University-Industry Collaboration in Managing Translation Projects: Perceptions and Responses from Students, Instructors, and Industry Partners, D. Cao, J. Chen, and S. Liu

This case study examines how students, instructors, and industry partners in university and industry collaborative translation projects perceive and respond to their experiences with these projects. It reports on collaborative translation projects at Xi’an International Studies University, involving the active participation of three stakeholders. We adopted a mixed-method strategy and employed surveys and one-on-one interviews to examine the responses from the stakeholders about their experiences and the impacts of the collaborative translation projects. Based on the research results, we suggest further research directed at the sustainability of these projects and the scalability of their benefits to a bigger population of students.

TEACHING CASES

Integrating Technical Communication into China’s Translation and Interpreting Curriculum: Course Design, Practice, and Evaluation of Two Graduate Classes, L. Dong and S. Li

Graduates with master’s degrees in Translation and Interpreting (MTI) are an important workforce in technical communication. To meet this need, we examined the pedagogy of trans-writing to better integrate technical communication into translation programs. This teaching case from two Chinese universities discusses the curriculum design, its implementation, and teaching effectiveness. To boost the employability of MTI students, we designed the courses as “user-centered trans-writing with global content,” which features trans-writing as a strategy for global content creation, user research as the core learning task, and team projects as the primary form of engagement. The trans-writing approach is effective in equipping MTI students with the necessary competencies for global technical communication. 

Translation and Localization in Global Technical Communication, B. Pihlaja, M. Das, L. Davis, A. Dean, D. Fonseca, E. Hughes, R. Joswiak, L. Koleva, M. Yang, and J. Zhang

This experience report was co-authored by the instructor and technical and professional communication (TPC) students from the 2020 and 2022 iterations of the “Global Technical Communication” graduate seminar. We describe the translation assignment, its development, and the groups’ final submissions and reflections. Students’ group and instructor reflections suggest the assignment’s potential to facilitate closer engagement with real world global TPC processes, deeper consideration of language and culture’s relationship in TPC, and developing appropriate levels of confidence in working on similar projects as TPC researchers or practitioners. Our experience report provides proof of concept for how we might begin introducing T&L practices to TPC students in low stakes but meaningful assignments.