Feeding Time at the Zoo: psychological aspects of a serious rock climbing accident

ABSTRACT

Rock-climbing has become very popular adventure sport across the globe. Researchers have begun to investigate how adventure sport athletes perform in a manner that reduces the likelihood of serious mishap, injury or even death. In this paper, we utilize a collaborative autoethnographic approach to explicate a serious traditional rock-climbing accident to better understand the accident experience and consider how this event might be useful to enhance effective performance. Findings suggest that effective performance and training for effective performance in traditional rock-climbing (and potentially all adventure sports) requires in-depth environmental and self-knowledge factors and the ability to tune into and adapt to moment-by-moment alterations in internal states and the physical environment. The impacts of these findings include the recognition that effective climbing is not determined solely by personality factors or a winners mentality, as reflected in traditional sport contexts, but on the reinforcement of humility and self-awareness.

KEYWORDS:

• Optimal performance
• climbing
• mountaineering

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Erik Monasterio

Erik Monasterio is a consultant in forensic psychiatry. He is the Clinical Director and Director of Area Mental Health Services for the Canterbury Regional Forensic Service, Christchurch, New Zealand. He is a Senior Clinical Lecturer with the University of Otago, CHCH School of Medicine. He has research interests in: the relationship between personality variables and extreme sports and criminal risk-taking behaviours, and physiological stress responses in extreme sports; the negative impact of new generation trade deals in health; inappropriate use of anti-psychotic medications; and forensic psychiatry. He has over 40 peer reviewed publications. Dr Monasterio also has 30 years-experience in extreme sports including with work as a mountain guide. He has over 50 first ascent climbs in all the major mountain ranges.

Eric Brymer

Eric Brymer is a behavioural scientist with an interest in wellbeing and performance across multiple domains but particularly in relation to adventure and nature-based experiences.