Equity in the Impact of Title IX on Officiating in the United States

Abstract

Gender equity in the United States has received considerable attention since the passage of Title IX in 1972. This synthesis seeks to explore the impact on the officiating industry for both male and female referees. Based on a critical mass of research conclusions were drawn to infer how Title IX has helped the officiating industry grow by increasing the job opportunities for officials seeking a career in sports. Conclusions drawn from the critical mass include that there are similarities and differences of female officials to male officials in general. However, the intent of Title IX was to create gender equity. The findings from the current research and conceptual writing on the topic demonstrate that the American sport industry has farther to go in creating equal opportunity for both males and females to benefit from the increased sport participation that has occurred as a result of Title IX. Further, a major finding in this synthesis is that there is inadequate research on Title IX and its impact on the makeup of officials who cover the games that both males and females play. With the female athlete participation rate almost five times that of the pre 1972 rate, why has that not translated over into the officiating realms, this is not clearly understood. In some instances, findings support that female participation in officiating has decreased since the enactment of Title IX. Although not a tenant of gender equity legislation specifically, only a small number of females officiate in the male dominated professional sports. More research is needed on opportunity as well as potential differences in males and females in decision making to determine if this exclusion from male professional sport is warranted or simply an avenue for discrimination that Title IX has not impacted.