Write your search in the input below and press enter.
Esc to close.

The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich

Peak Performance:
Not Just for Sports, for Life

  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
    • Recent
    • Athletes
    • Coaching
    • Sports Parenting
    • Sports Administrators
    • Life
    • Administrators
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact
  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Books
    • Videos
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact

Hello. Sign In

My Account
  • Login
  • Register
0
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk
Subscribe
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich
  • Recent
  • Athletes
  • Coaching
  • Sports Parenting
  • Life
  • Administrators
Home / Blog / Examining the Impact of Berating Youth Sports Officials

Examining the Impact of Berating Youth Sports Officials

By: Dr. Chris Stankovich | @DrStankovich | Nov 21, 2019

No Comments

This week yet another video emerged depicting a youth baseball umpire being harassed by fans so badly that he eventually walked off the field, leaving the teams without an umpire to officiate the game.  The final breaking point occurred when a woman off camera could be heard insulting the umpire by sarcastically asking the umpire if he was “mad because the kids are taller than you?” (:14 mark of the video).  What followed was a frustrated baseball umpire walking off the field, likely having worked his last youth baseball game.  Is this what we want kids to observe and model?  And does being a youth sports official give fans (mostly parents) free reign when it comes to harassment, insults, and in worst-case scenarios physical assaults?

In a second example softball umpire Kristi Moore was recently assaulted and left with a black eye for simply doing her job.  While the physical assault was bad enough, she offers an ominous warning for the future of youth sports without trained, dedicated officials in her tweet below:

Moore’s tweet above raises another important, modern-day concern: Taking your gripes to social media.  While it is important to protect the safety of officials at the ballpark, it is equally important that we refrain from online bullying designed to belittle, humiliate, or threaten officials.  Here again, parent harassment will ultimately lead to fewer qualified sport officials working in youth and interscholastic sports as Kristi Moore warns.

What’s fair when it comes to fan behavior?

I think that most people who attend youth sports games have a pretty good idea of what’s acceptable fan behavior, and what isn’t.  For example, most folks would likely agree that cheering, booing, and most reactionary responses are simply part of the game, and reasonable things officials should expect to experience while overseeing games.  We all accept that sports are emotional experiences, and that officials are going to receive criticism — especially when they make bad calls.  The problem, however, is that increasingly more fans are losing focus of where this “line” ends when it comes to acceptable and unacceptable behaviors, blurring our understanding of how we should interact with officials.

“You missed that call, blue!” is an example of a normal reaction by a fan following a play in baseball, and I would venture to say nearly every baseball umpire who has ever worn the uniform has received exactly that complaint (and accepted it as part of the game).

“Are you mad because the kids are taller than you” is a perfect example of going too far.  In this example the comment is directed at the man’s height, something clearly beyond his control, and the comment was solely intended to taunt and embarrass the umpire on a very human and personal level.  Not only is the outburst over the line, it also has absolutely nothing to do with the call on the field, but everything to do personally going after the umpire.

The crisis is happening now

Because of the way fans have been acting in recent years, increasingly more good officials are walking away from youth sports.  What used to be a fun way for adults to continue to enjoy a sport and work with kids has turned into an unpleasant experience, often including verbal and physical assaults.  When the fun that used to be a big part of the job goes by the wayside, all that is left is a job done solely for money.  And when you consider that youth sport officials make very little money for their efforts, it’s not difficult to see why so many adults today are finding different ways to spend their time.

When we lose good youth sport officials, our kids suffer terribly by means of potentially not having officials to work their games, or new officials who haven’t had the training and experience needed to successfully manage and call games.  These conditions leave kids exposed to unnecessary injury, compromises of integrity, and an overall less-than-optimal youth sport experience.

Final thoughts

It’s really not rocket science when it comes to how we should treat youth sport officials.  Cheering, jeering, and booing are perfectly acceptable ways to show emotion at games, while making things personal, delivering threats, and engaging in intimidation and physical altercations are never acceptable.  We are past the point of these kinds of umpire experiences (depicted in the video) as being OK, as it is never appropriate to model to kids that if you don’t like a particular call on the field, it’s then fair game to embarrass, humiliate, and possibly even injure a youth sports official.

Rather than taking our frustrations out on officials, we might instead accept that officials will make bad calls occasionally, and that what is most important is how kids learn to successfully respond to adversity.  Not only is this a great skill to teach kids for sport success, but it’s also a invaluable for life success.  We need to do better, and if we don’t we will soon face a very different sports landscape that will take away, not enhance, the youth sport experience for kids.

drstankovich.com

 

 

 

fan, integrity, officials, Parents_old, psychology, referees, safety, sport, sportsmanship, youth

  • Author
  • Comments
  • Details
Get to Know the Author

Dr. Chris Stankovich

Dr. Stankovich has written/co-written five books, including Positive Transitions for Student Athletes, The ParentsPlaybook, Mind of Steel.

Latest Blog Posts

  • May 23, 2023 Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • May 16, 2023 Mental Health Tips to Help Kids Avoid Sport Burnout
  • May 10, 2023 Watch for these Issues with Kids Playing Multiple Sports During Same Season
  • May 4, 2023 Understanding the Importance of a Balanced Athletic Identity for Kids
  • April 27, 2023 Turning Hope into Belief: The Psychology of Success

PREVIOUS POST

Understanding Kids: When Athletic Talent & Interest Don’t Match Up

NEXT POST

Can Intensity Be Created in an Athlete’s Personality?

Category

Amateur , Athletes , Athletic Counseling , Coaching , Fan Behavior , Leadership and Role Modeling , League Operator , Off Field Issues , Parent Training , Sport Philosophy , Sport Psychology , Sport Sociology , Sports Culture and Society , Sports Parenting , Sports Performance Science , Sports Safety , Uncategorized , Youth Sports

Tags

fan, integrity, officials, Parents_old, psychology, referees, safety, sport, sportsmanship, youth

  • Recent Posts
  • Most Read
  • Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • Mental Health Tips to Help Kids Avoid Sport Burnout
  • Watch for these Issues with Kids Playing Multiple Sports During Same Season
  • Understanding the Importance of a Balanced Athletic Identity for Kids
  • Turning Hope into Belief: The Psychology of Success
  • Morning Sports Practice Before School is Becoming the Norm, but is this Healthy for Kids?
  • Nature or Nurture? Exploring the Psychology of Sport Success
  • 3 Important Tips for Today's Multi-Sport, Youth Sport Athlete
  • Understanding Intelligence: Putting Knowledge into ACTION!
  • Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • The Sports Doc on TV

    Catch Dr. Stankovich’s tv, radio, and print interviews and columns here!

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Watch Videos
  • Sport Performance Assessment

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Quickly and accurately test your level of mental toughness in just a few minutes using the Sport Performance Assessment.

    (SPA), an easy-to-use sport psychology system specially designed to help you REACH YOUR FULL ATHLETIC POTENTIAL.

    learn more
  • SportsSuccess360

    Life strategies for performance and character development for coaches, parents, and student athletes competing in youth and interscholastic sports.

    Life Strategies learn more
  • Contact Dr. Stankovich

    1395 Grandview Avenue Suite 6, Columbus OH 43212

    (614) 561-4482
    Media & General Inquiries
    information@drstankovich.com
    Sales & Product Support
    sales@drstankovich.com
  • About Dr. Stankovich

    • Media
    • Blog
    • Testimonials
  • Products

    • Toolkits
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Audio
    • iPhone Apps
  • Services

    • Athlete Performance Training
    • Parent Community Forum
    • Coach Education & Development
    • Athletic Crisis Response and Intervention
    • Drug & Alcohol Assessment
    • Life Success Programs
    • Counseling & Consulting Services
  • Blog
  • YouTube
  • twitter
  • facebook

All rights reserved © 2023 Advanced Human Performance Systems™

↓ ↓