The purpose of our translation policy is to ensure that the translation of any PROBAST document accurately reflects the collaborative expertise of the PROBAST group.
We fully endorse “official” translations of the documents which have followed our translation policy. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about our translation policy and process. If you are in agreement with the below policy and would like to proceed with translation, please contact us to start this process.
Official PROBAST translations must meet the following criteria:
- Developed using one of the first publications of the most up-to-date version of the PROBAST document;
- Developed in collaboration with the PROBAST group;
- Follows the steps of translation described below;
- If the translation is published, original PROBAST authors will maintain primary authorship and translators will follow the authorship policy of the journal.
Steps of PROBAST Translation
Step 1: Contact us and select which document you wish to translate: Statement, explanatory paper, tool or any of these documents for a extension.
Step 2: Complete a draft of the translation of selected document. Use the most up-to-date document found on the website. If you are unsure of what version to use, please check with us.
Step 3: Have a back-translation of the draft translation carried out by an independent source. The person who back-translates the translated draft should not be involved with the translation in the first place and should be familiar with scientific language in both English and the selected language. If you do not know someone who is able to carry out this task, please let us know and we will try to assist you in finding someone to do this.
Step 4: Send us the back-translated documents for a review. We will make note of any differences between the back-translation and the original English publication of PROBAST and send you this feedback. It is important that the translation is as close to the original English version as possible since the wording of the document was carefully and purposefully selected by the PROBAST group based on a consensus process.
Step 5: If necessary, revise translated document based on feedback from the PROBAST group. This step may entail one or more iterations to ensure that wording of the translation is as accurate as possible.
Step 6: Disseminate the completed translation. While the translation will be posted to the website for users of the selected language to access freely, we encourage translators to seek publication of their translation in an open-access journal. While our authors will retain primary authorship on the translated document, translators will be listed in the acknowledgements section of the article as well as on secondary author byline where permitted by journals. Under the author line state “Translated by xxx”. Translators are encouraged to write an accompanying editorial which may be done in collaboration with one or more PROBAST executives, if desired. All official translations of PROBAST will be announced and posted on the website.
