Syntactic Cross and Reading Effort in English to Japanese Translation

In English to Japanese translation, a linear translation refers to a translation in which the word order of the source text is kept as unchanged as possible. Previous research suggests that linear translation reduces the cognitive effort for interpreters and translators compared to the non-linear case. In this study, we empirically tested whether this was also the case in a mon- olingual setting from the viewpoint of reception study. The difference between linear and non-linear translation was defined using Cross values, which quantify how much reordering was required in Japanese translation relative to an English source text. Reading effort was measured by the average total reading time on the target text. In a linear mixed-effects model analysis, variations in reading time per participant and text type were also considered random effects. The results revealed that the reading effort for the linear translation was smaller than that for the non-linear translation. In addition, the accuracy of text comprehension was also found to affect the reading time