How instant replay impacts the psyche and performance of officials

Written By Kevin L. Burke
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(Getty Images)

In the world of sports, instant replay has long been a way of life. We expect to see the replay of numerous plays not only over and over again but from various different angles. We even have the good fortune of being able to attend live sporting events and see replays on the big screens provided at the stadiums and arenas.

With NFL officials under constant pressure due to an increase in controversial calls and a rise in penalties, instant replay has become even more crucial in the NFL and other sports.

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Instant replay was invented by CBS's 29-year-old director Tony Verna. The first instant replay in sports was used on December 7, 1963 in an Army-Navy college football game. The first, and only, use of instant replay in this game was of Army's Rollie Stichwey scoring a touchdown from the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter. To be sure viewers were aware they were not watching live action, play-by-play announcer, Lindsey Nelson stated, "This is not live. Ladies and gentlemen, Army did not score again."

The impact replay has had on our sports viewing enjoyment is immeasurable. Also, instant replay has been incorporated in several sports to help ensure the rules are being administered properly. While it is obvious sports fans, announcers and athletes mostly approve of using instant replay to get plays right, less attention has been paid to how instant replay may affect referees, umpires and officials.

In the mid-1990s, I was contacted by a major newspaper asking my opinion on whether the use of instant replay in sports has or will make referees less confident. This particular sports writer's view was referees would feel "second-guessed" and therefore become less confident in their calls, therefore leading to more mistakes. (Full disclosure here, I officiated high school and college basketball games for 23 seasons.) From a psychological standpoint, officials are human and may react differently to similar circumstances. However, my response was instant replay would actually benefit officials for two major reasons.

First, instant replay usually shows umpires and referees get the calls correct. The media does not usually focus on calls made correctly — more attention is given to those plays which are overturned. More attention is given to blown calls because it is more interesting to discuss. Therefore, instant replay may be viewed as a confidence builder when it supports the official’s original call.

(Getty Images)

And NFL official reviews a play. (Getty)

Secondly, replay review helps officials in knowing if they do make a mistake, there may be an opportunity to get the call right. No official ever wants to miss a call, particularly during a crucial time in a game. Most referees want the play to be called as it actually happened. Instant replay helps make it more likely the call will be made accurately.

While officials certainly want to get the call right the first time, instant replay may be viewed by some officials as relieving some of the officiating game pressure. Officials understand when they make a call, it is usually during fast-paced action. Replay allows a second look under less intense circumstances, which improves the chances of the call being made correctly. While there are some officials who do not like replay because they feel, on occasion, it makes them look bad, many tend to feel instant replay helps improve the game and their officiating performance, and is usually supportive of their decisions.

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What is crucial is the psychological reactions of officials after missing a call. High-level and experienced officials know mistakes are simply going to happen. Just like with coaches and athletes, a perfect performance is extremely rare. In many sports such as basketball and ice hockey, the speed of the game makes it very important officials do not thoughtfully linger on a mistake. A missed call must be put in the memory bank and dealt with after the game.

If officials continue to think about whether not they got a call correct, or why they missed the previous call, while continuing to work the game, it is likely more mistakes will be made. Referees must encourage themselves and each other to focus on what is happening now, not what has happened.

In my experiences, officials who are good at moving on have a better opportunity to move up in the officiating ranks.

Jerry West is credited with this humorous statement about officials, "The trouble with officials is they just don't care who wins." Officiating is a tough task that requires non-biased and objective interpretation and application of the rules. The value of instant replay in giving all of us a second look — while still controversial to some — provides more opportunities to increase the accuracy of referees' decisions.

Kevin L. Burke is a sport psychology professor and consultant at Queens University in Charlotte, N.C. Follow him on Twitter @sportpsyching.

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