Development and validation of the Referee Training Activity Questionnaire (RTAQ): Towards a better understanding of the training practices of soccer officials
Date
2020-08-10Author
McEwan, Gary
Unnithan, Viswanath
Easton, Chris
Arthur, Rosie
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
McEwan, G.P., Unnithan, V., Easton, C. and Arthur, R. (2020) 'Development and validation of the Referee Training Activity Questionnaire (RTAQ): Towards a better understanding of the training practices of soccer officials', Journal of Sports Sciences, 38(24), pp. 2782-2793.
Abstract
To develop and assess the validity of the Referee Training Activity Questionnaire (RTAQ), a systematic process was employed: 1) item generation; 2) assessments of content and face validity; and 3) assessments of criterion validity. In stage 1, items were generated following semi-structured interviews with an expert panel (n = 8). Following content analyses, the RTAQ was developed and comprised 3 primary sections (12 sub-sections) assessing: 1) attributes perceived to underpin soccer officiating performance; 2) general training information; and 3) specific training practices. In stage 2, the preliminary RTAQ was assessed for content and face validity by a sample of experts (n = 6). Based upon the content validity index (CVI), content validity was confirmed for 8 sub-sections (CVI ≥ 0.78) with 5 sub-sections being deemed invalid (CVI < 0.78). Various amendments were carried out in accordance with participant feedback. In stage 3, the RTAQ was completed by a cohort of officials (n = 25) who subsequently recorded a detailed training diary. Negligible mean biases, wide 95% LOA, and significant Pearson correlations were observed between the RTAQ and training diaries for most training activities, suggesting the RTAQ holds promise as a useful and effective alternative of acquiring insight into the training practices of soccer officials.