Confirmatory factor analysis and validity of the sexual harassment scale in football refereeing

Abstract

Inequalities between men and women in the workplace are reflected in professional sports, specifically football refereeing. This phenomenon sometimes becomes sexual harassment since it is a stereotypically considered male profession in which women are a minority. To measure that behavior, it is necessary to count on valid and reliable tools. Therefore, the goal of this study was to determine the factorial structure and the discriminant and convergent validity of the ‘sexual experiences questionnaire’, version of the Department of Defence (SEQ-DoD). Eighty-nine male football referees and ninety-four female football referees, with a mean age of 23.30 ± 4.85 years, participated in this studio conducted questionnaire in Andalusia, Spain. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed using the robust maximum-likelihood estimation method. The goodness of fit was assessed, and the factorial invariance was calculated to determine the stability of the model. Subsequently, the validity was confirmed. The results corroborated the validity and reliability of the questionnaire adapted to the population studied. Therefore, it can be used as a research instrument.