homer calls

[jemiller]

Once we start the game, and actually before the game when everyone is warming up and we are meeting the coaches, game management staff, etc. I have no problem being objective.

Home and visitor mean nothing. Coaches on both sides are going to try and push their views on a play, penalty, or perceived penalty, etc. It's there or it's not, and I don't care what side of the field or bench we are in front of.

Some of these "objective" tests try to identify tendencies for teams, and officials, cheerleaders, parents, mascots, you name it. Do they have any validity? I doubt it.

[Eastshire]

I read a study that examined the effect of direction of play, that is play proceeding to the official's right as opposed to play proceeding to the official's left, on the official's perception of fouls. While I have some concerns about how the study was conducted (the subjects were college students as opposed to licensed officials), what they did was take pictures of soccer challenges and presented them to the subjects. They also included mirror images of the pictures to make it appear that play was moving in the opposite direction.

What the study found was that we tend to penalize plays moving to the right more often than we penalize the same play moving to the left.

What the coaches may be noticing is our subconscious bias to not penalize plays moving toward that sideline. Since it has to do with movement in a particular direction, both teams can take advantage of it.

[JRutledge]

I cannot read the information that was linked as it makes me require a membership first.

I have always understood when you do these kinds of studies you have to first understand what you are studying. Many times when there are these studies about officiating, it seems clear that there is a complete lack of understanding of officiating. They are looking for some magic bullet to find bias in something that does not inherently have bias.

Peace

[Eastshire]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I cannot read the information that was linked as it makes me require a membership first.

I have always understood when you do these kinds of studies you have to first understand what you are studying. Many times when there are these studies about officiating, it seems clear that there is a complete lack of understanding of officiating. They are looking for some magic bullet to find bias in something that does not inherently have bias.

Peace

That's a definite danger, and like I said the thing that bothers me is they used students and not referees in the study (although they did require they pass a rules test). But it is instructive to know that humans in general have a directional bias. Do we, as officials have enough training and experience to overcome that bias? I think we'd all like to answer yes but it can be hard to tell for sure.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Eastshire

That's a definite danger, and like I said the thing that bothers me is they used students and not referees in the study (although they did require they pass a rules test). But it is instructive to know that humans in general have a directional bias. Do we, as officials have enough training and experience to overcome that bias? I think we'd all like to answer yes but it can be hard to tell for sure.

Well that is worse. If you are using students and not people that do this on a regular basis, that cannot be a very good study if you are trying to show how this relates to officiating across the board.

Peace

[Robert Goodman]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I cannot read the information that was linked as it makes me require a membership first.

I recommend you register. Not enough officials participate there, and I think they'd appreciate more.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Robert Goodman

I recommend you register. Not enough officials participate there, and I think they'd appreciate more.

I am already a member of a fan boy site in my state and every time we have a discussion about rules I wonder why I am a member. I doubt seriously that they would give a darn as the fans know everything. Even when you show them the line and verse in rules or mechanics. Not something I would recommend anyone do unless you like banging your head against a wall for fun to see it bleed.

Peace