Interpreting
activity is considered a high-anxiety activity due to its immediacy,
multitasking, complexity of cognitive processing, and uncertainty of cognitive
processing. Research has shown that interpreting anxiety, as the biggest
emotional obstacle in the interpreting process, is the main emotional factor
that leads to individual differences in interpreting. Students often claim to
have fear or anxiety behaviors in interpreting exams, interpreting
competitions, and interpreting classes. However, the research on interpreting
teaching attaches importance to the cultivation of language knowledge, cultural
knowledge, and interpreting skills, and does not pay enough attention to
emotional factors such as motivation and anxiety in interpreting learning,
which makes it difficult for the cultivated interpreters to meet the
requirements of professional practice. In recent years, virtual reality
technology (VR) has been gradually applied in the field of foreign language and
interpreting teaching for creating a real, interactive and experiential
language learning environment. Situated Learning Theory stresses that the
fundamental mechanism for learning to take place is for individuals to
participate in the real context in which
knowledge is generated, and to realize the construction of knowledge through
the interaction with the community of practice and the environment. Virtual
reality technology can satisfy the needs of language learners for real contexts
by providing learners with immersive, imaginative and interactive scenario
simulations, and has a certain positive effect on alleviating learning anxiety.
Therefore, relying on the virtual simulation course “United Nations Kubuqi International Desert Ecological Science and
Technology Innovation International Volunteer Language Service Practical
Training System”, this paper adopts a combination of quantitative and
qualitative analyses to investigate the interpretation anxiety level of
the interpreter trainees and the factors affecting them in the VR situation to
help them discover effective responses to interpreter anxiety.
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