Development of the Referee Retention Scale

Abstract

Building on the current sport officiating research, this study puts forth the Referee Retention Scale. Through a three-phase process, the researchers developed a valid and reliable scale to predict sport officials’ job satisfaction and intention to continue. The first phase consisted of instrument development, whereas the second phase included field testing of referees (n = 253). After exploratory factor analysis and Rasch analysis, the resultant refined scale from Phases 1 and 2 was then administered to 979 referees in Phase 3. Phase 3 results using confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the seven-factor, 28-item Referee Retention Scale was a valid and reliable tool for measuring and predicting referee retention. The results highlight the importance of considering a variety of factors associated with the referee experience, which include administrator consideration, intrinsic motives, mentoring, remuneration, sense of community, lack of stress, and continuing education. A discussion on how the Referee Retention Scale can help administrators manage and retain sport officials is included.

The future of officiating: analysing the impact of COVID-19 on referees in world football

“…26 Informal support networks are those that are organized by the referees themselves, that are organic and not manufactured by any governing body intervention. 27 Both form part of the wider support network and provide essential structures for referees to operate within. However, this updated and new environment will ultimately make it even more challenging for any new referees, particularly young referees who might feel more isolated than usual.…”

“…The changing environment necessitated following the outbreak of COVID-19 will provide challenges for new and experienced referees, as has been discussed in this commentary, but this setting will also provide the opportunity for governing bodies to reconsider the support that is available for referees, and to refocus their efforts in this regard, particularly given the importance attached to support networks by referees. 29 COVID-19 has temporarily changed the way of life for billions of people and will have longlasting impacts upon both professional and mass participation sport. Football has and will continue to be affected by the pandemic and there are considerable issues that exist in the short, medium and long term.…”

“…We know that abuse, support networks, the disciplinary process and other issues related to the recruitment and retention of referees have been prevalent for a considerable period of time, 3 with little evidence of these issues being resolved. 4 However, the situation presented as a result of COVID-19 could be utilized to reset the relationship between players, coaches and referees, through a reengagement and refocus of the different stakeholder groups.…”

Examining the career dynamics of elite football referees: a unique identification profile

“…For these reasons, referees undertake tasks that no one can do because the job requires appropriate experiences, deep knowledge of the laws of the game, physical fitness, mental ability, management of the players and coaches, communication with colleagues, quick decisions, and the ability to cope with stress. Previous research shows that some of these skills, such as communication with colleagues and dealing with stress, can be contributory factors to match officials discontinuing from their chosen sport (Ridinger et al, 2017). For example, the experiences and attrition rates of 15 former basketball referees who also had some involvement in officiating other sports such as baseball, soccer, and volleyball have been considered (Warner et al, 2013).…”

“…This kind of job crafting refers to relational crafting in the workplace and makes referees achieve the psychological state of meaningfulness of their work, as Berg et al (2013) articulated that there is a positive relationship between relational job crafting and meaningfulness of the work. This reference to the sense of community, involving the building of support networks, can potentially lead to increased referee retention (Ridinger et al, 2017), as lake of referee community, referring to lack of support and feeling of community between referees, is associated with eventual departure from the career (Warner et al, 2013).…”