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Checklist for translations

The following checklist for developing translated material is based on MMHA’s experience in the No More ‘Mualagh’ Project and is contained in the publication Beyond Words: Lessons on translation, trust and meaning.

  • Understand your audience, including their cultural needs, literacy levels and reading proficiency, their preferred language, who they turn to for advice, the sensitivity of the material and its cultural impact, and whether you are dealing with a single cultural group or with sub-groups.
  • Find the best information available.  Is it in plain English and clinically accurate?  Is it sufficiently short, simple and clear to be translated?  Do you need to get permission and acknowledge your source?
  • Test the cultural appropriateness of information and identify missing material. Is it too Western or too complex? 
  • If necessary, rewrite, modify and develop culturally appropriate English versions of materials.  Rewrite in plain English, remove colloquial or culturally specific references.  Explain ‘untranslatable’ Western concepts and constructs.
  • Continually review all materials for clinical accuracy.
  • Ensure the quality of the translations.  Select a translator who is bilingual in both written and spoken language, and bicultural and familiar with mental health terminology and language. They should be a professional interpreter accredited to Level 3 by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters Inc.
  • Retest the material with the focus groups, several times if necessary.
  • If the material is to be used for the Internet will it be slow or expensive to download? Does audio material use the correct regional or ethnic-specific accents?  Is audio material in a format suitable for all the media required?
  • Develop a distribution and sustainability plan.  Translation and material development is expensive.  Get the most from your investment and share your work with others.
  • Evaluate sensitively and allow all participants to learn from your project.
  • Report on your project and share it with others through networks.  Use your experience to inform future projects.

 

last modified 13/04/2007 16:41
National Mental Health Strategy
Multicultural Mental Health Australia is funded by the The Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing through the National Mental Health Strategy.
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