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Verbal Aggressions Against Major League Baseball Umpires Affect Their Decision Making
Joël Guérette1,2, Caroline Blais1, Daniel Fiset1
1Département de psychoéducation et de psychologie, Université du Québec en Outaouais.
Psychological Science
|February 20, 2024
Summary
Excessive criticism of umpire calls in baseball can benefit the complaining team. Umpires are less likely to call strikes against players from a team that excessively criticizes their decisions.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Behavioral Economics
- Psychology
Background:
- Excessive criticism is a common strategy to restore fairness.
- The effectiveness of verbal aggression in influencing decisions is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of excessive criticism on home-plate umpire decision-making in Major League Baseball.
- To determine if verbal aggression provides an advantage to the complaining party.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 153,255 pitches from the 2010-2019 Major League Baseball seasons.
- Examined home-plate umpire calls in response to excessive criticism.
- Tested alternative hypotheses, including umpire compensation for ejected teammates.
Main Results:
- Home-plate umpires were less likely to call strikes for the complaining team after excessive criticism.
- Umpires were more likely to call strikes for the opposing team.
- Evidence did not support the compensation hypothesis.
Conclusions:
- Verbal aggression, under specific circumstances, can provide an advantage to the complainant.
- Excessive criticism influences umpire behavior, potentially altering game outcomes.
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