Development of the Referee Retention Scale

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 d...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of sport management 2017-09, Vol.31 (5), p.514-527
Main Authors: Ridinger, Lynn L., Kim, Kyungun R., Warner, Stacy, Tingle, Jacob K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Job satisfaction
Retention
Sports management
Sports officiating
Studies
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Summary: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.
ISSN:0888-4773
1543-270X
DOI:10.1123/jsm.2017-0065