Assessing Whether Black Uniforms Affect the Decisions of Turkish Soccer Referees: Is Finding of Frank and Gilovich's Study Valid for Turkish Culture?

Abstract

Frank and Gilovich (1988) found that teams with black uniforms were penalized by referees more than other teams that did not wear black uniforms in the U.S. National Football League (NFL), and the U.S. National Hockey League (NHL). This finding was examined for the referees in the Turkish Premier Soccer League (TPSL) for the soccer teams wearing or not wearing black uniforms during actual games. 30 male referees' (ages 22–45 years, M = 34.8) decisions were analyzed in a total of 2,142 Turkish premier soccer league games played in 7 seasons. Using the number of red and yellow cards and penalty kicks teams drew as a penalty decision criteria, no significant differences were found between Turkish soccer teams wearing black uniforms or those not and the number of penalty kicks. This result, which was different from that of Frank and Gilovich's work, was discussed in relation to the social psychological point of view of different cultures and societies.