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Examining Associations Among Emotional Intelligence, Creativity, Self-efficacy, and Simultaneous Interpreting Practice Through the Mediating Effect of Field Dependence/Independence: A Path Analysis Approach

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Abstract

Simultaneous interpreting (SI) is a cognitively complex activity due to the concurrent nature of receiving and producing messages. Previous research confirms that SI is profoundly influenced by cognitive, attitudinal, and psychological mechanisms. Following this line of enquiry, the present investigation proposes a unique model by integrating cognitive and psychological factors related to the professional performance in SI. Specifically, this study examined a model to test the predictive and mediational effects of emotional intelligence, creativity, self-efficacy, and field dependence/independence (FD/FI) on simultaneous interpreting. A total of 248 university students majoring in Translation Studies completed measures of General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES), Emotional-Quotient Inventory (EQ-I), Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT), General Embedded Figures Test (GMFT), and two SI tasks, namely the oral cloze test (OCT) and the listening and memory recall exercise (LMRE). The path analysis supported the direct effect of creativity and its indirect effects mediated by FD/FI on SI. Emotional intelligence made only a significant indirect effect on SI through FD/FI. Self-efficacy, on the other hand, made only a significant direct effect on SI. Emotional intelligence and creativity also contributed significantly to the prediction of FD/FI. The analyses also revealed a significant correlation between emotional intelligence and self-efficacy and also between creativity and emotional intelligence. Finally, FD/FI directly predicted simultaneous interpreting. Other hypothesized associations were not found to be statistically significant. The findings suggest that psychological attributes can have a great impact on students’ performance in simultaneous interpreting training exercises. Implications of the study and the research avenues are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran

    Sima Ferdowsi

  2. Department of Language and Literature, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran

    Mohammad Hasan Razmi

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  1. Sima Ferdowsi
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  2. Mohammad Hasan Razmi
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Correspondence to Mohammad Hasan Razmi.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments. This study is approved by ethics committee of Social Sciences Studies at Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Iran.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. The researchers obtained institutional and individual consent from the corresponding foreign languages departments, professors, and the students involved.

Overview of the manuscript

The present manuscript investigates the role of four psychological attributes on translators’ performance in simultaneous interpreting. The findings indicate that creativity, self-efficacy, emotional intelligence, and field independence exert significant direct and indirect effects on simultaneous interpreting practice. The findings also provide implications for translators as well as translator trainers in raising awareness of the psychological states the translators experience during simultaneous interpreting practice.

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Ferdowsi, S., Razmi, M.H. Examining Associations Among Emotional Intelligence, Creativity, Self-efficacy, and Simultaneous Interpreting Practice Through the Mediating Effect of Field Dependence/Independence: A Path Analysis Approach. J Psycholinguist Res 51, 255–272 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-022-09836-0

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