Target International Journal of Translation Studies· 2026Q1
Disentangling cognitive and emotional load in interpreting
- 1citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
Cognitive load, not emotional load, primarily drives physiological stress (GSR arousal) in interpreters, especially later in tasks, while emotional load is linked to vocal pitch and self-reported negative affect.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Cognitive load significantly increased galvanic skin response (GSR) arousal in interpreters, especially during later interpreting stages.
- Emotional load was primarily reflected in increased vocal pitch and self-reported negative affect (PANAS, STAI, NASA-TLX).
- A pitch convergence between speaker and interpreter was observed.
- Interpreting accuracy was not predicted by any of the measured stress indicators (GSR, pitch, voice intensity, self-report scales).
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Abstract This study employs a multimodal approach to investigate how emotional and cognitive load differentially impact interpreter stress. Twenty student interpreters consecutively interpreted four Turkish-to-English mental healthcare narratives of varying emotionality and difficulty, constructed using a 2×2 factorial design. Stress responses were measured using galvanic skin response (GSR), voice parameters (pitch and voice intensity), and self-report scales (PANAS, STAI, and NASA-TLX). Stimuli were normed for emotional valence and linguistic complexity using readability indices, expert ratings, and natural language processing (NLP) tools. Results showed that primarily cognitive load drove GSR arousal, particularly during later interpreting stages, whereas emotional load was reflected in pitch and self-reported negative affect. A pitch convergence between speaker and interpreter also emerged. None of the stress indicators predicted interpreting accuracy, suggesting a possible role for individual coping strategies.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Target International Journal of Translation Studies, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Language and Linguistics
Language and LinguisticsArts and Humanities