Psychology in
basketball officiating
MOSCOW
2015
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Д53Psychology in basketball officiating:
Handbook for basketball referees/ FedorDmitriev – Moscow: 2015. – 53 р.
Edited by:
FedorDmitriev International referee
This book is recommended for young and experienced referees. During the
game it is very important to understand principles of the rules, their interpretations,
spirit and feeling of the game. Psychology aspects are ones of the main parts of
referees’ preparation. We hope that this book will help you to understand and feel
the basketball game much better.
© FedorDmitriev, 2015
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Communication.
2. Technical foul.
3. Psychoemotional professional burning out in the basketball. Stresses.
4. Body language (language of gesticulation and mimicry). Game language.
5. First victories over yourself. Your first success.
6. Learn how to thank.
7. Out of bounds violation.
8. Emotions.
9. False self-rating.
10. Attitude to the officiating
11. Not the third in trio
12. General thoughts about basketball officiating
13. Line of the game
14. Competition
15. Teamwork
16. Professionals
17. Believe in yourself
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COMMUNICATION
People at present time cannot communicate, even simply, easily, usually
communicate, as this was 20-30 years ago. This concerns especially young people.
In 21 century, era of many modern technologies, cell phones, internet, computers,
young people have difficulties in personal contacts, i.e. in direct contacts face to
face.
There are reasons of many conflicts, problematic situations and others.
Young man cannot express his thoughts, and sometimes to explain something, to
decide dispute, even to apologize for something he finds extremely difficult.
The skill to communicate - this is one of the basic qualities of
communication, communicative person. Sometimes young people, they know
computer very well, are actively in contact with all things technical, but once it
comes to usual, normal contact (communications), many problems and complexes
appear. First of all, there is a problem with their selves. Psychologists always pay
much attention to the skill of communications. One who knows how to speak,
knows how to express his/her thoughts, to answer opponents, knows how to listen
to opponents, without interrupting them, how to explain, to solve problem, such
person is always useful, as specialist and as professional.
Nowadays without the skill to communicate it is impossible to reach one’s
goal, to move forward, to make results. Sometimes you ask yourself: “How earlier
people did communicate, kept connected, they did discuss their work, built plans,
without modern devices of communication?” The answer is simple. Then people
were more open, ready for contact, communicable and went on to have a dialogue,
to contact more freely, more easily. They talked, if not on the phone, but during
meetings, looking to each other and into the eyes, attentively listening to. Now this
is rarity. Young people “sit” in the Internet, internet cafes, Skype, Face-book,
twitter, etc. Sometimes we can see that even sitting in a hall (lobby) of some hotel
people send massages to each other, sitting practically in front of each other, and
no one of them interferes to speak. Habit, so it is more convenient for them.
But to live only with these new modes of communication - this is clearly not
a solution. There is no sincerity in feelings, truth in the eyes, honesty. You cannot
transmit your feelings and thoughts through devises to express them by words, by
views, by signals, by imitating a direct look into each other’s eyes. In this situation
you cannot be fully fair or, at least, it will be quite evident that you are closed, in a
way. They themselves feel it. It can be visible for everybody.
The skill to communicate “face to face, person to person” is a very important
quality, which young generation either loses or does not give proper value to, or
thinks about as unnecessary. Young people lose a feeling of sincerity, reality.
Many are afraid to tell about it. They can accept their errors, but in no way
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recognize that they do not know how to communicate or that they are much afraid
of social contacts as themselves. Sometimes because no one they have to tell about
this (they don’t have a teacher).
We have a lot of examples of such a closed nature, of feeling fear, having no desire
to communicate with people. It is not only young persons’ fault, but also of
educational system itself, teachers and instructors including, who do not teach
young people how to develop simple skills to talk.
We always can hear that one should be harder in his/her solutions, to defend
his/her point of view, not to listen to, but to make tough decisions, like on the
court, because “the referee is always right”. But in this situation, simple advice,
short phrases, apology, sign of attention, and kind look could solve all problems.
To young referee sometimes it is difficult to find same one to acknowledge that he
has problem in contacts and in behavior, even in simple situations. Such situations
happen not only at games, our entire life consists of them.
Young man/woman may know all computer programs perfectly, use all
devises of information, know foreign languages, but simple communication
remains mystery for her/him, because he/she fears to communicate or sometimes
has no ability or desire to, and ultimately finds it shameful for himself/herself.
In these situations, if we speak about the basketball referees, it is necessary
to help young person, to show him ways of how to contact correctly, to teach him
at the very beginning how to tell simple things, how to easily communicate. We
must try to support them during their initial games, not to break them
psychologically. It is one of the basic purposes and tasks of all instructors,
moderators, commissioners. Thus, indeed they prepare not only referees, but
normal, usual, adapted young people, ready for real life, in the first place, and for
the basketball, in particular.
Basketball and usual life are tightly connected. If you cannot normally
communicate, you constantly will have problems in real life, at your workplace,
and then you will have them also in basketball. It is necessary therefore to know
how to communicate efficiently, how to speak directly, “eyes to eyes”.
Then you will not have large problems not only in your life, but also in
basketball. In this computer or other devices can help you, but they will not protect
you or solve all of the life’s problems of communication. Good luck!
TECHNICAL FOUL
At present technical foul is considered usual, normal, “light” violation. We
do not speak about cases, when aggression, amoral behaviors and provocation are
obvious. We try examining the reactions of players, disagreements with the
decisions made by referees, the disturbances of coaches and other participants.
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