Edinburgh Napier University

  Abstract. oðciating, but player-oðcial in- teraction is diðcult to train and unresearched. This study interviewed team captains from di erent sports and used video elicitation and Go man’s (The presentation of self in everyday life, 1959, Interaction ritual: Essays in face-to-face behaviour, 1967) dramaturgical sociology of social inter- action to explore ways players interact and attempt to influence oðcials. Players were found to behave irrationally sometimes, but mostly they are strategic. Player attitudes to interactions range from fatalistic acceptance to whatever the oðcial decides, through selective complaint, to continu- ous opportunism. Players attempt to influence oðcials directly and indirectly through complaining, questioning, flattery or praise. These findings deepen our understanding of the balance – between authority, accountability and respectfulness – that characterises e ective communication and inter- action with players.