Cool Article on Skydiver Psychology

[pilatus_p 0]

Struck a bit of a chord with me ... thought I would share! Apoloz if its been posted before (search didnt bring anything up)

http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/index.php?term=pto-19941101-000027&page=2

Hm actually well it concentrates more on climbers, but talks about High Stimulus Seekers [HSS] and how their brains work. I guess that could mean us, too?

I really relate to the disorganisation and job stuff. I'm bored off my nut. Maybe I should quit and go join the Navy, chasing Pirates in the Caribbean.

EDIT TO ADD: To all those people sick of being asked the "why do you TYOOPGA?", here is a quote from the article you can buzz back at them:

Farley is more optimistic. Even civilized society, he says, holds ample opportunity for constructive risk taking: investing in a high-stakes business venture, running for political office, taking an unpopular social stand. Farley argues that history's most crucial events are shaped by [HSS] behavior and [HSS] individuals, from Boris Yeltsin to Martin Luther King, Jr.

He warns that much of the current effort to minimize risk and risk taking itself runs the risk of eliminating "a large part of what made this country (the US) great in the first place".

Ross

http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

[Orange1 0]

Interesting article, but I found this a bit "pat":

Quote

Indeed, this peculiar form of dissatisfaction could help explain the explosion of high-risk sports in America and other postindustrial Western nations. In unstable cultures, such as those at war or suffering poverty, people rarely seek out additional thrills. But in a rich and safety-obsessed country like America, land of guardrails, seat belts, and personal-injury lawsuits, everyday life may have become too safe, predictable, and boring for those programmed for risk-taking

People skydive even in countries which aren't rich and safety-obsessed, and in places like Bosnia where one might think they have been exposed to all the risk they would want in a lifetime. Personally I think you get more skydivers in places like the US simply because more people in rich countries can afford to jump!

Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

[StevieBoy 0]

"Personally I think you get more skydivers in places like the US simply because more people in rich countries can afford to jump!"

What little you know about the world, UK, US & Europe, we are all the same boat, we have to pay mortgage, electric, gas, telephone, petrol, taxes on EVERYTHING, and what little we have left, FOOD to feed the kids.

I pay out more than I earn just to survive. And if I choose to jump, it's food or 12500ft.

it deosn't mttaer waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is frist and lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm.

[Trae 1]

in reply to "What little you know about the world, UK, US & Europe, we are all the same boat, we have to pay mortgage, electric, gas, telephone, petrol, taxes on EVERYTHING, and what little we have left, FOOD to feed the kids.

I pay out more than I earn just to survive. And if I choose to jump, it's food or 12500ft. "
................................

Good on you Stevieboy.... you're not alone.

Any-one who has had to work hard to earn their way knows exactly what you're talking about.


................................
in reply to "in reply to "He warns that much of the current effort to minimize risk and risk taking itself runs the risk of eliminating "a large part of what made this country (the US) great in the first place".
.....................


Great is as great does
Lets see some greatness for a change & hey ..what does it look like?

[Orange1 0]

Quote

What little you know about the world, UK, US & Europe, we are all the same boat, we have to pay mortgage, electric, gas, telephone, petrol, taxes on EVERYTHING, and what little we have left, FOOD to feed the kids.

I pay out more than I earn just to survive. And if I choose to jump, it's food or 12500ft.

What little you know of the world, to be lucky you CAN have a mortgage, energy in your home, a car to put petrol in, access to telephones etc. When people are literally battling just to survive, not just bitching about how much it costs to own a home, any kind of sport, much less skydiving, just isn't an option.

fwiw I know plenty about the US - my dad is a citizen and I have spent lots of time there. You missed the point of the post entirely. Do a search on the web, pref the World Bank website but wherever you choose and compare things like per capita income, telephone lines per 1000 people, road mileage per 1000 people, cars per 1000 people, doctors per 1000 people etc. Then do a dz search here and see how many DZs there are in the western industrialised world, vs how many there are in emerging markets. Then maybe you'll understand what I mean.

Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

[pilatus_p 0]

Hi Orange

Interesting point - I hadn't looked at the global figures, and it reminds me to not always take at face value what I read. Looking back at the article, the writer says 'explosion of high risk sports'. It would be interesting to see how the rate of growth in the West compares with the East and might serve as a better judge of whether the writer is correct.

But anyway guys, arguing over the west vs east point aside, did you think the article was pretty close to the mark in terms of skydiver (or more accurately, HSS) psychology, or did you think it was way off? I think most skydivers are pretty unique guys & gals and for me at least the article hits home.

Are there any super organised, office-job-loving skydivers out there? Would we really all be happier with high stimulus, almost dangerous jobs, than sitting behind desks? This would be opposite to the GENERALISATION IN THE ARTICLE that skydivers lack job satisfaction etc as cited in the article (NOT my view - the purpose of my post is to find out if you agree with that statement as opposed to pigeon-holing you).

Thanks guys

Ross

http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

[Orange1 0]

Quote

But anyway guys, arguing over the west vs east point aside, did you think the article was pretty close to the mark in terms of skydiver psychology, or did you think it was way off? I think most skydivers are pretty unique guys & gals and for me at least the article hits home.

Are there any super organised, office-job-loving skydivers out there that skydive? Would we really all be happier with high stimulus, almost dangerous jobs, than sitting behind desks? This would be opposite to the GENERALISATION IN THE ARTICLE that skydivers lack job satisfaction etc as cited in the article (NOT my view - the purpose of my post is to find out if you agree with that statement as opposed to pigeon-holing you).

Thanks guys

Ross

Well, I think it depends what type of "office job" you mean. I work in an office but in an environment that is constantly challenging and anything but routine - they did pyschometric testing a few years ago and, for what its worth, most of us are "type A", and many people do some kind of "non-typical" sport, mainly rock climbing, scuba diving, sea kayaking and mountain biking - & there is one other regular skydiver and a surprising # of people who have done at least one jump at some stage. I do think skydivers are "different" but for me it's not the "risk seeking" aspect of it, but more the continuous challenges that the sport throws up at you. I've read a number of books about mountain climbing and that seems to be the same thing that keeps those guys going back - in general, more "in spite of the risks" rather than "because of the risks".

btw fwiw I absolutely love my job, as do most of my colleagues. So I would say our attraction for these kind of sports is more just an extension of our personalities rather than an outlet we are not able to get otherwise, and that we are all very lucky we have ended up in a situation where we are able to enjoy both our jobs as well as our chosen sports.

I am sbolutely no pyschologist though, so all this is just my lay opinion.

Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

[Taikoen 0]

I scared my mom at one point of time because I told her that driving was too easy. I preferred when it was pouring down rain and the road was barely visible. That made driving a little bit more of a challenge and enough to keep my attention full.