Transcription and Translation: Bridging Language Barriers for Global Communication
Two Key Tools in Enhancing Global Communication
Transcription and translation are two key tools in enhancing global communication. Language barriers can prevent effective communication between people from different cultures, but there are ways to overcome them. As an example, transcription services can be a very useful tool for researchers who want to share their research with the world. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for overcoming language barriers in the sciences. Let’s look at how transcription and translation bridge the gap for communication to take place on a global level.
The Difference
Transcription can still be viewed as human-based, while translation is commonly viewed as machine-based. The goal of transcription is to convert spoken words into written text, whereas the goal of translation is to convert written text from one language into another.
Translation can be used in combination with transcription to provide a more complete picture of what was said during an interview or conversation. Combined, they help to paint a fuller picture of a conversation that took place, especially if multiple languages were used.
Best for Sharing
Human transcription services are useful for researchers who want to share their findings with a global audience. Translators and interpreters can help bridge the language gap to facilitate communication between different cultures by interpreting research from one language into several others.
Transcripts of interviews can be used as sources for articles or books about particular subject matter. This information can then be shared on social media platforms where they can reach an international audience.
Differentiating Factors
While transcription and translation are both useful tools for overcoming language barriers in the sciences, they are not the same. Transcription is simply writing down what someone says. Translation is when you write down what someone says in another language.
Transcription helps with translation by providing a written record of what was said during an interview or meeting that can be easily shared among team members who speak different languages. Transcripts also provide a framework for future conversations with participants. Providing a point of reference, you know exactly where to start when asking follow-up questions about previous topics because everything has already been recorded and translated.
Allows for Collaboration
Increasingly, researchers are collaborating with scientists from all over the world. This cross-border collaboration allows for diverse resources to be pooled. However, the drawback is that cross-cultural collaboration can result in communication issues.
Fortunately, transcription allows for information to be captured in a reliable manner. Translation then allows for the information to be translated into the relevant language for diverse teams to work together seamlessly.
Invaluable Partnership
Before the results of research can be shared, they must be translated into the appropriate language of the recipients. Translating is not the same as transcription; translators are not always available and can be expensive. In contrast, a transcription service offers more cost-effective options for translating your audio files into another language.
Transcription and translation services can help you communicate effectively with international colleagues and collaborators. Transcription services are a great way to share research with the world, while translation services allow you to communicate with your global audience in their native language. This distinction also allows for both transcription and translation to be used together.
Working Together
In many cases, providing translation services as part of a document delivery service such as document scanning and digital archiving, allows organisations to save money on translation costs over time. The reason for this is that the cost of providing transcription services for documents that will be scanned into electronic format is significantly less than if you had to translate each page of paper into its corresponding electronic version.
If you are worried about how much it would cost to get your documents transcribed before they are scanned into an archive, rest assured that there are several options available to make things easier on your budget. Human transcription services offer many options with sliding payment scales and delivery formats.
Consider for a Moment
Transcribing audio or video files into text is the process of transcription, while text that has been written in two languages would benefit from translation services. When you consider that most documents are created in one language, but need to be translated into another language before they can be used by non-native speakers, you’ll see how important it is for your organisation to invest in these types of services.
By offering transcription and translation services as part of a document delivery service your organisation can significantly reduce its costs. Instead of using several employees for every part of the process, a single employee or company can be dedicated to the task in order to optimise efficiency.
Bridging the Language Barrier with Transcription and Translation
These are just a few examples of how transcription and translation can be used to bridge the language barrier between scientists from different cultures. There are many others: for example, scientists who want to share their research with the world could use transcription services to make their papers more accessible. Organisations that want to collaborate with international partners could use translation services as part of document delivery services such as digital archiving or online storage. Beyond the realm of science there are also industries like entertainment, that benefit from both transcription and translation. In a world where it’s easy for things to get lost in translation, transcription services help to bridge that gap.