Height bias in basketball refereeing: The influence of player and referee height on foul decisions

Simulation theory posits that individuals use internal motor simulations to anticipate others’ actions. Embodied officiating, aligning with this theory, suggests that referees use similar internal simulations to judge athletes’ actions. We tested whether basketball referees favor players of similar height in their foul decision making, as shared physical attributes might facilitate the simulation of their actions. Analyzing 8641 foul calls from 219 games in the 2020/21 Men's German Basketball-Bundesliga season, we found that mean height differences between referees and players modestly affected foul calls: Referees called more fouls as the height difference with the fouling players increased, and fewer as the height of fouled players increased. These findings suggest that physical attributes like height may subtly influence referees’ judgments and indicate complex interactions between referee and player height. Further research is needed to determine the mechanisms behind this effect.