The Experience of Early-Career Rugby Referees Javeed
Do I stay or do I go? The experience of early-career rugby referees Javeed Ali (Auckland University of Technology), Michael Naylor (Auckland University of Technology), Lesley Ferkins (Auckland University of Technology) Officials play a vital role within organised sport (Warner, Tingle, & Kellett, 2013). They ensure organised sport is played fairly, safely and in a timely manner (Kellett & Warner, 2011). However, it is well documented that there is a shortage of officials at the grassroots level (Auger, Fortier, Thibault, Magny, & Gravelle, 2010; Doan & Smith, 2018; Livingston & Forbes, 2017; Ridinger, Kim, Warner, & Tingle, 2017; Warner et al., 2013). This suggests that more needs to be done to retain officials. Officials in their first five years are most likely to quit (Cuskelly & Hoye, 2004; MacMahon et al., 2014). In fact, studies have found that attrition amongst first year officials specifically can be as high as 60% (Bernal, Nix, & Boatwright, 2012; Cuskelly & Hoye, 2004; Forbes & Livingston, 2013). There are many reasons why officials choose to continue officiating. These can include; their experience (e.g. Kellett & Shilbury, 2007), motivations (e.g. Giel & Breuer, 2019; Hancock et al., 2015; Livingston & Forbes, 2017, 2016; Livingston et al., 2017), perceived organisational support (e.g. Choi & Chiu, 2017; Cuskelly & Hoye, 2013; Giel & Breuer, 2019; Kim, 2017; Livingston & Forbes, 2016; Livingston et al., 2017), role commitment (e.g. Barnhill et al., 2018), and organisational commitment (e.g. Gray & Wilson, 2008). These studies reinforce that retention of officials is difficult and complex (Auger et al., 2010). However, many of these studies highlight the reasons why officials discontinue. In contrast, this study explores why early-career rugby referees in New Zealand choose to continue refereeing.
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