The psychology of sports officiating is brought to the forefront of training today more than ever before. Clougherty, who has officiated men’s Division I basketball for 25 years, considers that his underlying theme when he addresses the “special something” beyond an official’s actual performance on the floor. “When I look back at who’s made it and who’s been on the staff and then let go,” he said, “seldom do I look back and say, ‘That guy was fired because he missed calls or had bad judgment.’ You can usually trace it back to things that got him into trouble, like how he conducted himself outside of officiating.”
__Often, when officials are considered for advancement, the number of plays they got right has little to do with the decision. What matters are the elements of character, namely: honesty, trust, attitude, preparation and ability to deal with mistakes.
When evaluating officials, Clougherty asks, “Are they honest with themselves and with the crew?” Officials need to be able to stay in touch with who they are, what problems they have to face themselves, and problems with which they need to seek help. Being honest with yourself is the most important first step. If you aren’t honest with yourself, it will affect your honesty toward others, as well as their trust for you.
Before officials can be recommended for attractive positions or desirable promotions, they need to be recommended by their supervisors. Supervisors, from crew chiefs to league coordinators, must be able to trust those officials to represent them professionally.
__“(NCAA national coordinator of men’s basketball officials) Hank Nichols once told me that there were some games in the NCAA that weren’t the best,” said Clougherty. “When I asked him what he thought the problem was, he told me that he might have bad games because the crew chief is refereeing with two guys that he doesn’t feel comfortable with and doesn’t really trust.” Trust affects attitude and ultimately performance. After a meeting with Big East Conference Supervisor of Men’s Basketball Officials Art Hyland, who runs a camp for Big East referees, Clougherty’s viewpoints were reinforced. “I asked him how many crackerjack referees he had at camp and he said, ‘John, camps are so cosmetic that they all look good. I have no idea whether they can referee or not.’ (Hyland) spends about an hour talking to potential candidates and they don’t talk about basketball. They talk about the way they conduct their lives,” Clougherty said.
__Supervisors do not want to have problems with drunk driving convictions, solicitation of prostitutes, drug abuse, domestic violence or other such violations. No matter how good your game judgments are and how many plays you get right, if you have serious character flaws, you’re going to get fired. “I know referees who have gotten fired for those reasons,” Clougherty said. In order to advance and be successful, character matters. Supervisors need to be able to trust that officials know how to conduct themselves off the court.
__“Negative thoughts are like a disease,” said Clougherty, “and they’re contagious.” A negative attitude not only affects the person experiencing it, but also everyone around. All officials have favorite places to work, favorite teams to referee. “We have coaches that don’t give us a problem,” Clougherty said, “and crews we like to be with. That’s all positive. Sometimes those things don’t happen. Sometimes you’ve got a two-and-a-half hour drive after you get to the airport and you’re refereeing with a couple of guys who you think are chumps. The weather’s bad and the supervisor’s been on your case about some game that you worked in the past. All of those negative thoughts are going to work on you and make the upcoming game a bad one. When that happens, you’ve got to figure out how to turn everything around to the positive.”
__He also encourages officials to watch tapes of good officiating and compare them with poorly worked games. Usually part of the success and part of the failure relates to mental preparedness. “Any information you can get that helps you to avoid mistakes will be beneficial,” Clougherty stressed.
If mistakes do happen, move on. Referees often concern themselves too much with making mistakes. “One mistake here, one mistake there, and we have indecision,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. That’s going to happen.”
__The alternative to making occasional mistakes is becoming indecisive. “Once you become indecisive and indecision becomes a habit, you’re standing still,” said Clougherty. “It’s indecision that kills you.”
__Clougherty, who has officiated 11 Final Four games, added, “There’s no substitute for being prepared.” Preparedness includes not only being physically fit, but also being ready mentally.
__Mental preparation is something that officials need to work on. To be prepared, you must know the rules. “If you think, ‘If things break down I’ll just use common sense and do what’s fair,’ then you’re going to get yourself into a pickle,” Clougherty said. “I referee plenty of games and there are nights that I say, ‘That’s just not right; that’s not fair.’ It doesn’t matter because you must apply the rule.”