Probing Athletes’ Perceptions Towards Electronic Judging Systems – A Case Study in Gymnastics

Abstract

We study athletes’ perceptions towards the transition to electronic judging systems. Using purposive sampling, we select an area of sports that is undergoing a somewhat disruptive change in the way athletes are evaluated: gymnastics. We draw on interviews conducted with gymnasts to probe their perceptions of electronic judging systems. We find that gymnasts are quite positive towards the implementation of these systems, although they expressed some uncertainties (i.e. how these systems influence the artistic side of gymnastics) and risks (i.e. technical problems) of the technology. The positive side of the transition to electronic judging systems mainly relates to the deficiencies of the human-based judging, it being vulnerable to biases, human error, human fatigue, judges’ personal preferences, and inherent lack of explanation. Our informants expressed that electronic judging systems contain affordances that could efficiently mitigate the said challenges associated with human-based judging.