Here we sought to add to understanding of how and why football referees make decisions. A grounded theory methodology was undertaken to tap into the experiential knowledge of 9 national level referees (aged 23 to 35 yrs). Results indicated that referee decision-making actions were not predominantly aimed at traditional notions of decisionmaking accuracy (e.g., correctly identifying rule transgressions), but were instead focussed on meeting two overarching task goals: maintaining control and preserving the integrity of the competitive game. These objectives were, in part, informed by co-invested task outcomes which referees perceived that players, spectators, coaches and fellow referees had about 'how the game should be played'. Analysis revealed 'four pillars' used to meet these expectations, which were conceptual notions of: safety, fairness, accuracy and entertainment. These findings showed that: (i) referees co-construct the game with players, and that (ii), referee decision-making is an emergent process of the performer-environment relationship nested within task goals. It was concluded that: (i) decision-making accuracy should be viewed very much within the context of a competitive match, and (ii), distinctions should be made between types of bias and the complex strategies that referees use to manage the game.

The role of elite coaches' expertise in identifying key constraints on long jump performance: how practice task designs can enhance athlete self-regulation in competition. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 1-17.

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This study examined the experiential knowledge of eight Australian national-level football referees (3.2 yrs mean national-level experience) about the notion of consistent decisionmaking during competitive matches. Using a grounded theory approach, the analysis revealed that participants view 'consistency' as context-dependent, rather than a rigid process of uniformly responding to isolated foul-play transgressions with putatively correct responses.Our results present two key conceptual abstractions -'referential and game dependent' and 'purpose and context'as a framework for understanding referee decision-making consistency. Data indicated that these performance intentions for consistency directed referee attention (attunement) to key contextual information that is necessary to prospectively control player behaviours and thus, the emergent trajectory of each game. Results support the view that consistent decision-making performance is an emergent process defined by the decisionmaking actions of the referee, and exploitation of specifying contextual game factors. Our discussion outlines how this process can be understood as dynamical transactions within a complex system (i.e. competitive football game), in which varying decision-making responses to superficially similar incidents is a marker of expertise, rather than inconsistency. These findings draw attention to the limitations of isolated foul-play video assessment for training and advocate for more representative game opportunities for referees to practice making decisions with key contextual information sources present. Future research could explore how significantly specific performance goals and contextual factors interact to shape emergent decision-making choices across different sports.