Subjects’ Trait Anxiety Level and Its Effect on State Anxiety Scores

Trait anxiety refers to the “relatively stable individual differences in anxiety

proneness, i.e., differences among people in the tendency to perceive a situation as

threatening and respond to these situations with differential elevations in State anxiety.

Persons who are high in anxiety proneness are disposed to perceive greater danger in

a given situation, which causes the elevation in State Anxiety (Spielberger, 1975). As

a result, many has naturally assumed that interpreters benefit from a less

anxiety-prone personality, and many had suggested that conference interpreters may

have a higher stress tolerance, or lower Trait Anxiety scores, in the context of this

present study.

In the research, subjects’ Trait Anxiety scores were compared to that of the

normative data based on Taiwanese general population (Zhong and Long, 1984).

Analysis results demonstrated that the difference between subjects’ and the general

population’s Trait Anxiety scores is statistically insignificant (t=0.43732, p=0.05).

Research findings refuted Hypothesis two that Participating interpreters’ average Trait

Anxiety scores are statistically lower than the normative data.

To further investigate the effect of subjects Trait Anxiety on their anxiety level

at work, the Trait anxiety scores were analyzed along with their State Anxiety scores.

Pearson correlation (r=0.387, p= 0.051), linear regression analysis, stepwise

multivariable regression analysis (t=0.452, p=0.656) have again demonstrated a weak

relationship between subjects’ State Anxiety score (dependent) and Trait Anxiety

score (independent). In other words, contrary to State-Trait Anxiety Theory, subjects’

Trait Anxiety scores were found to have minimal effect on their State Anxiety score.

This research finding refuted Hypothesis Four that participating interpreters’ Trait

Anxiety scores positively correlate with their State Anxiety scores..

To explore the possible explanations of the two observations, it is worthwhile to

revisit the literature review on interpreters’ job stressors as presented in chapter two.

Empirical studies had led to the conclusions that sources of to job stress resulting in

interpreters’ elevated anxiety at work include tremendous amount of concentration

required on the job, inconsideration on the part of the delegates, incompetent speakers,

preparation of the sessions, poor organization, poor working condition, and frequent

travel. However, moderating factors, such as interpreters’ natural stress tolerance

(Trait anxiety), experience, competency and motivation, exist to decrease the negative

effect of the aforementioned stressors.

In this research, analysis results nevertheless failed to demonstrate a significant

difference between subjects and the general population’s Trait Anxiety Scores;

moreover, results failed to show a significant effect of subjects’ Trait Anxiety on State

Anxiety. This suggests that the aforementioned moderating facotrs such interpreters’

working experience, competency and motivation may excerxise greater influence in

reducing interpreters’ work anxiety. Effect of interpreters’ working experience on

their anxiety at work is discussed in the following paragraph. As for other moderating

factors such as competency and motivation, further researches are needed to

investigate how the factors help to decreases interpreters’ anxiety at work.

4.4.2.2 Effect of Experience on State Anxiety Scores

State anxiety is an unpleasant emotional arousal in face of threatening demands

or dangers (Lazarus, 1991), and State anxiety, as reported by the same subject, can

vary according to the extent to which a situation is perceived as dangerous or

threatening by the person. In the this research, subjects’ State Anxiety is defined as the

temporarily elevated anxiety level measured by the self-report State-Trait Anxiety

Tests no earlier than one hour before subjects start interpreting simultaneously for a

conference. After subjects’ State Anxiety scores were obtained, statistical analysis

such as Pearson correlation, linear regression, multivariable regression, and stepwise

analysis were used to examine the relationship between subjects’ State Anxiety scores

and years of experience.

Pearson correlation (r=-0.590, p=0.002), linear regression (y= -0.8851x+ 50.25;

R² = 0.3477), multivariable regression (t= -2.758, p= 0.011), and stepwise analysis (t=

-3.577, p=0.002) all demonstrated that subjects’ State Anxiety scores were

significantly influenced by years of experience; i.e., subjects’ experience in

conference interpreting was found to negatively correlate with their state anxiety

score.

The results conform to statements by several authors in the field that

anxiety can be viewed as a “state of apprehension, uneasiness and uncertainty

resulting from the anticipation of a threatening event,” it can also be said, based on

research findings, that the more subjects’ experience is, the less anxious, nervous, or

worried they feel when interpreting. The results confirmed Hypothesis Three that

participating interpreters’ State Anxiety scores negatively correlate with their years of

experience..

The findings of this research have led to the conclusions that subjects’ working

experience helps to decrease their anxiety level at work, but subjects’ Trait Anxiety

scores were found to have minimal effect in reducing State Anxiety scores. This

highlights the importance of interpreters’ acquired aptitude rather than their natural

abilities. For veteran or novice interpreters who are seeking ways to manage job stress

at work, the research findings demonstrated the benefit of accumulation of working

experience. For recruiters of interpreting students, the finding suggests an evaluation

approach from a long-term perspective. Instead of emphasizing candidates’ natural

anxiety proneness, it is more reasonable to evaluate whether the candidates in

question will be able to build up a reasonable stress tolerance level below which they

will not drop in the long run.

It’s worthy to note that despite the significant effect of experience on State

Anxiety level, there is currently no evidence that interpreters who are less anxious or

nervous at work would necessarily have better work performance. The effect of

interpreters’ anxiety level at work on their performance is yet to be empirically

investigated.