Abstract
<jats:p><p><strong>Context and relevance. </strong>Terms in psychological science do not function as static labels but as dynamic systems of variants, the variability of which is determined by shifting scientific paradigms, communication goals, and genre-specific features. The relevance of this study lies in the fact that in the practice of scientific translation, ignoring the systemic nature of this variability becomes a primary source of cognitive-pragmatic distortions, substitution of concepts, and transformation of the original scientific discourse. <strong>The objective. </strong>To develop a diagnostic approach to assessing translation adequacy based on recognizing variation and considering it as a significant feature of a scientific term. The empirical basis of the study consists of translations of excerpts from clinical and developmental psychology articles published in English-language journals, performed by MSUPE master&rsquo;s students as part of their coursework. <strong>Methods and materials. </strong>The methodological basis of the work is a comparative analysis, implemented through an original three-level diagnostic model (lexical-semantic, definitional, and system-conceptual levels). <strong>The results </strong>of the study systematize typical terminological distortions (paradigmatic, system-conceptual, ethical-terminological) and demonstrate their direct connection with the translator's disregard for the pragmatic, paradigmatic, and discursive causes of variation. <strong>Conclusions. </strong>It is shown that to prevent cognitive-pragmatic distortions, translation strategy must include mandatory definitional verification of a term, analysis of its systemic relations, and consideration of the pragmatic parameters of its use. The proposed diagnostic toolkit allows for formalizing the translation process, moving it from the sphere of intuitive choice to the area of methodologically justified decision-making.</p></jats:p>