Showing papers by "Kerry S. Courneya published in 1990"
TL;DR: The phenomenon of home advantage has been shown to exist for all major team sports at both the college and professional levels as discussed by the authors, and the most dramatic effect was reported by Varca (1980), who found that college basketball teams won 70% of their home games.
Abstract: During regular season competition, the phenomenon of home advantage has been shown to exist for all major team sports at both the college and professional levels. For example, Schwartz and Barsky (1977) found a favorable home win percentage of 53 % in professional baseball, 58% in professional football, 60% in college football, 64% in college basketball, and 64% in professional hockey. Similarly, Edwards (1979) reported a home win percentage of 54% in professional football, 59 % in college football, and 56 % in professional baseball. The most dramatic effect was reported by Varca (1980), who found that college basketball teams won 70% of their home games. And finally, in a comprehensive study across a wide cross-section of sports, Pollard (1986) observed that home teams had a winning percentage of 54 % in professional baseball, 55 % in professional football, 56% in English league cricket, 60% in professional hockey, 63 % in professional basketball, 64% in professional soccer (England), and 65% in professional soccer (North America). In an attempt to provide some rationale for this consistent pattern of results, Schwartz and Barsky (1977) offered three general explanations: learning factors, travel factors, and crowd factors. The learning explanation evolves around the home team's familiarity with the playing surface and its component parts, which is gained through numerous practices and games. The travel explanation refers to the fact that visiting teams experience fatigue and a disruption in their routine because of extensive travel. The third explanation, crowd factors, refers to the positive reinforcement and social support the home team receives from its partisan crowd. Three additional possibilities were advanced by Pollard (1986): referee bias, the use of special defensive tactics by the visiting team, and a self-fulfilling belief in the home advantage. These appear to be practical manifestations of the previous explanations rather than explanations themselves. Referee bias may result from an official's personal identification with a particular team or from intimidation by a boisterous crowd.
30 citations
TL;DR: This article examined the effects of game location and scoring first on performance outcome in college baseball and found that game location had a significant impact on the performance of teams in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Abstract: This study examined the effects of game location and scoring first on performance outcome in college baseball. Data were collected from 10 teams in the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Ana...
30 citations