Effects of source languages on Swedish translation students’ socialisation processes

Abstract

This article reports on a longitudinal focus group study of two groups of translation students aimed at investigating their socialisation into the translation profession. The students followed the same MA programme in Translation Studies at a Swedish university but worked with different source languages (SL): Japanese and English. The focus group data were analysed thematically following Braun and Clarke, with a point of departure in Weidman et al.’s socialisation model and its three core elements: knowledge acquisition, investment, and involvement. The findings show that the two groups’ SLs played a crucial role in their socialisation into the profession, affecting all three core elements to various degrees. The findings can be described as either pertaining to personal reasons or institutional constraints. Recognising Japanese as a language of low diffusion and low resources in the Swedish translation context provides an explanation for these findings. Finally, implications for translator education are discussed.