Predicting stay/leave behavior among volleyball referees

This study aimed to predict stay/leave behavior among volleyball referees. The predictor variables reflect commitment aspects from the literature: attraction, perceived lack of alternatives, personal investments, and feelings of obligation to remain. Intent to quit was assumed to mediate the link between these predictor variables and actual turnover. Participants were 420 volunteer volleyball referees officiating at the international, national, or local level. Predictor variables explained 50% of variance of intent to quit, which was the only significant predictor of actual turnover several months later. The percentage of correctly classified subjects was 86.2%. Intent to quit mediated the link between enjoyment and involvement alternatives and stay/leave behavior. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that intent to quit is conceptually and empirically separable from the predictor variables, albiet that strong overlap was observed between enjoyment and involvement alternatives. It is concluded that the most promising way to reduce actual turnover among volleyball referees is to enhance positive affective responses to officiating, particularly by ensuring procedural fairness in the promotion system and paying more attention to referee training and supervision.