“I don't want to learn translation”: Exploring the systemic roots of burnout among translation master's students

This study explored the systemic causes of learning burnout among master's students in translation and interpreting programs and developed a theoretical model to illustrate the interrelationships among these causes. Using grounded theory as the research methodology, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 23 translation master's students from 4 universities in China. The findings revealed that learning burnout was influenced by multiple factors across four key environments: social, institutional, and proximal environments, and personal habitus. Additionally, the study identified interactions both across these environments and within factors of the same environment, offering a more dynamic and comprehensive understanding of the issue. The study extends ecological systems theory by introducing a "Habitus" system, which highlights the internal factors influencing individuals' psychological states, thereby providing a more comprehensive understanding of learning burnout. Additionally, it enriches social practice theory by further concretizing the concept of "field" within the educational context, offering a nuanced perspective on how environmental and systemic factors shape the experiences of translation master's students. By constructing this theoretical model, the study extends existing perspectives on learning burnout and provides valuable insights for educators and program administrators to better understand its underlying causes and optimize training strategies for translation master's students.