Ana J. Bridges, Ph.D.

Description:

Over 20% of people residing in the United States speak a primary language other
than English (US Census, 2025). Psychologists interested in providing treatment for or
conducting research on this subpopulation often find a lack of surveys and psychological
instruments available in non-English languages (Buros Center for Testing, n.d.). The most
common methods of managing this gap is to either translate measures using a forward-only
translation (Dhamani & Richter, 2011) or to conduct a forward-backward translation (Klotz et
al., 2023). However, these approaches are less than ideal because they often lack diverse cultural
input and can result in semantic errors and bias (Erkut, 2010). In this presentation, a review of
translation frameworks is provided, their pros and cons discussed, and recommendations for
optimal cultural and linguistic translation procedures described. Attendees will learn best
practices for feasible translation of survey and clinical instruments that can be deployed in
research or clinical settings.