It鈥檚 not just 鈥渂ecause it鈥檚 there鈥�
Mountaineer George Mallory may have quipped that people climb Everest 鈥榖ecause it鈥檚 there鈥�. In fact, the reasons why people seek extreme sports such as high altitude mountaineering are far more complex. Sport psychologists at 黑料不打烊 are recognised world-leaders in establishing the psychological motivations for taking part in extreme sports.
In untangling the complex reasons that drive people to take part in extreme or risky sports or prolonged endurance challenges, it seems that conquering the stress caused by the challenge is more important than the achievement alone because of the emotional gain that it provides.
Dr Tim Woodman鈥淢ountaineers will often recall how they overcame their fears and anxiety during a particularly challenging expedition rather than recalling how they actually successfully climbed a peak- it seems that summiting the peak is not as important as conquering their own emotions, which are often strong and negative鈥� says Dr Tim Woodman of the .
Dr Woodman explains that people who take up extreme sports experience the same intensity of emotions as the general population, but their expectations of life appear to be higher. As a result, they seek out extreme sport to experience a heightened emotional response.
Research based on extensive interviews and questionnaires conducted by thee at the School of Sport, Health & Exercise Sciences, reveals that two elements are involved. One they call 鈥榚motion regulation鈥�. The paradox is that while most people seek enjoyable emotions, those taking part in extreme sport often seek to experience negative emotion such as anxiety in order to gain control of that emotion and ultimately to turn the negative emotion into a positive one - with the feelings of euphoria that follow.
The other aspect they describe is 鈥榓gency鈥�. They have established for the first time that people who take up extreme sport do so to make up for a lack of 鈥榓gency鈥� or influence in other aspects of their lives, such as their emotional partnership. They can gain 鈥榓gency鈥� or influence in a particular aspect of their lives through their actions in their chosen activity. In other words, people will feel that they can be the driver of emotional experiences in the mountains rather than feel like the passenger of those experiences in everyday life.
Tim Woodman concludes by saying that these types of people are responding to a psychological need, and that they often make good leaders. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e often quite level-headed as you need emotional stability to cope with the pressure that you place yourself under in these extreme situations.鈥�
Publication date: 29 December 2011