Embodied empathy in translation studies: enhancing global readers' cognitive and emotional engagement with translations of traditional Chinese medicine terminology

The embodied nature of language comprehension has gained increasing theoretical and empirical support in the fields of linguistics, cognitive science and psycholinguistics (Gallese, 2018;Shtyrov et al., 2023;Garello et al., 2024;Visani et al., 2025). Embodied language comprehension theory holds that language is not a mere abstract symbol system, but is deeply rooted in the sensorimotor and affective experiences of individuals (Niedenthal, 2007;Zwaan & Taylor, 2006). As Gibbs (2006) points out, whereas traditional beliefs tend to view meaning as an abstract entity divorced from bodily experience, embodiment theory emphasizes that the process of language comprehension is frequently accompanied by a bodily simulation of the motor, perceptual, and affective states embedded in linguistic content (Barsalou, 1999;Gallese & Lakoff, 2005;Glenberg & Kaschak, 2002;Hauk et al., 2004). Embodiment is particularly crucial in cross-cultural contexts, as language is not only a medium for information transfer, but also a carrier of cultural and experiential worldviews.Within this theoretical framework, cross-cultural discourse provides unique challenges and opportunities for embodied language processing research. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) discourse is a typical example of this, with a language system that highly integrates bodily metaphors, physiological imagery, and culturally embedded affective models Pritzker & Hui, 2014;Unschuld, 2012;Wang & Chen, 2023). While conveying medical knowledge, TCM expressions encode an embodied worldview that intertwines physical health and emotional states (Tiquia, 2011). As TCM does not dichotomize mind and body, but views emotions as a unity of physicality and experience, its texts provide rich resources for exploring how readers mobilize embodied meanings in cross-cultural contexts.Several international organizations have played a pivotal role in the process of standardizing TCM terminology by issuing translation guidelines and reference documents. The World Health Organization (WHO), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS) have developed translation frameworks for core TCM terminology (Han et al., 2025). Nevertheless, despite relatively coordinated efforts, inconsistencies in terminology translation still exist and a universally recognized uniform standard has not yet been formed (Zhou et al., 2023). Inconsistency in the use of terminology hinders the reader's understanding of the translated text and his or her effective grasp of the cultural meaning and deeper connotations carried by TCM terminology (Ye & Zhang, 2017). In addition to the problem of terminological inconsistency, the presentation of the translation itself constitutes another obstacle. Many TCM terms tend to be overly abstract and academic in the English translation process, thus weakening their embodied and experiential dimensions. For global readers, whose bodily experiences and cultural frameworks often differ from those of TCM contexts, understanding such expressions requires linguistic decoding along with the simulation of unfamiliar bodily states and emotional experiences. Nevertheless, the disconnection between language, culture, and bodily experience often hinders the successful realization of this simulation process (Beard, 2001;Overgaard, 2017;Rizzolatti & Sinigaglia, 2020).Against the above background, this paper proposes the concept of embodied empathy as an innovative theoretical perspective for exploring the reception effect of cross-cultural translation. Specifically, this paper explores how translators can, through linguistic choices in translating TCM texts, stimulate readers' sensory arousal and emotional resonance, thus engaging their embodied cognitive resources.The target readership of this paper is a global audience of non-Chinese-speaking backgrounds who are exposed to TCM mainly through translations and lack direct experience and familiarity with its linguistic, cultural and embodied underpinnings. A group of particular interest is the general public readers, those who are more inclined to connect emotionally with the vivid and experiential dimensions of the language than the professional TCM practitioners who value terminological equivalence and clinical precision. Accordingly, the embodied empathy framework and translation strategies proposed in this paper are primarily intended for intercultural communication and public engagement contexts, rather than for clinical, regulatory, or professional translation purposes. While this paper principally develops a conceptual framework and proposes translation strategies based on theoretical analysis, it does not include empirical validation of the embodied empathy model. The aim is to offer a hypothesisgenerating perspective on how embodied mechanisms may inform TCM translation. Future research is needed to empirically examine the effectiveness of these strategies, for example, through reader response studies, cognitive-affective testing, or neurocognitive experiments.Recent research in cognitive linguistics and neuroscience emphasizes that language comprehension is not based on purely abstract symbolic representations, but is deeply rooted in sensorimotor and affective systems. Pulvermüller (2018) introduces the concept of Action Perception Circuits (APCs), suggesting that language representations and bodily experiences are integrated at the neural level through such networks and this is supported by Hauk et al. (2004), who show that reading action verbs activates motor cortical areas associated with the corresponding body parts, revealing the somatotopic organization of semantic meaning. Gallese and Cuccio (2015) build on the theory of embodied simulation by suggesting that language comprehension involves mirroring mechanisms, that is, the simulation of bodily movements and emotional states through pre-reflective neural processes. Their notion of "paradigmatic knowledge" highlights that language users mobilize internalized motor patterns when comprehending linguistic meaning, even in the absence of actual movement. From an enactivist perspective, van Elk et al. (2010) argue that comprehension is not based on representational cognitive structures, but rather is generated dynamically through embodied interactions with the environment, focusing more on procedural than declarative knowledge.Even in the comprehension of abstract concepts, embodiment still plays an important role. Borghi et al. (2017) propose a "multiple representation view", which integrates sensorimotor simulation with metaphorical, emotional and social contexts. Overall, these perspectives collectively point to a dynamic view of language comprehension as an emotionally and perceptually based, socially embedded, and interactively generated process, a cognitive schema that also provides theoretical underpinnings for the notion of embodied empathy in translation (Zwaan et al., 2002;Glenberg, 1997;Kaschak et al., 2005;Shiang et al., 2024;Kiefer & Pulvermüller, 2012).Within an embodied cognition framework, empathy is increasingly viewed as a sensorimotor-affective process that integrates perspective-taking and emotional resonance. Recent research in psychology and psychotherapy suggests that empathy is a multidimensional construct, comprising cognitive and affective components that are interrelated yet remain relatively independent. (Gladstein, 1983;Goldstein & Michaels, 1985;Hoffman, 1977;Strayer, 1987;Basch, 1983;Bohart & Greenberg, 1997).In this context, cognitive empathy refers to an individual's ability to adopt or infer another's perspectives, thoughts, and affective states; whereas affective empathy involves affective resonance or direct experience of another's emotions (Gladstein, 1983). This dual model lays the groundwork for more embodied empathy research, which seeks to integrate the two empathic mechanisms through a sensorimotor and affective simulation lens.Simulation theory suggests that empathy arises from the internal reproduction of another person's state, and that its neural mechanisms are mediated primarily by the mirror neuron system (Gallese, 2003). In his model of "shared multimodal space", Gallese (2003) states that observing another person's actions or emotions activates the observer's own neural circuits, which resonate at the body level. At the level of language comprehension, Gallese and Cuccio (2015) further propose a tripartite model, in which bodily action, affective states, and linguistic structures work together to shape the process of comprehension. The reader generates analogical empathy through sensory movements and affective activation in reading, and enters the linguistic world through a perceptual experience. This view is echoed in the psychological and psychotherapeutic traditions. Rogers (1980) emphasizes that empathy encompasses cognitive insight as well as affective attunement, allowing one to experience another person's world as if it were one's own. Barrett-Lennard (1993) points out that the validity of such affective resonance depends on its successful intersubjective communication. In clinical practice, Cooper (2001) identifies three forms of embodied empathy: allowing the body's resonance to unfold naturally, interpreting bodily cues, and maintaining awareness of one's own embodied state. Nonetheless, he also cautions that empathy is always proximate, and that its alignment is fleeting but influential.Viewed collectively, these perspectives underscore the multidimensional nature of empathy, in which bodily simulation, emotional resonance, perspective taking and intersubjective communication are intertwined. 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