Arrogance and humility among divers

[DavidFL]

Interesting comparison to Sully; the aviation profession has very similar characteristics with regard to arrogance and hubris. My basic rule is...the more some stranger wants to talk about his aviation or combat exploits....the less likely they ever happened.

 

[Saniflush]

I guess I have been really fortunate and have not run into any higher percentage of "one uppers" in the diving community than I do in day to day life. I call them one uppers because no matter what you may have done or where you may have been, either they have been there, their father invented it, or their mother screwed it.

I suppose a lot of my good fortune in avoiding these folks has been due to being in league with a really laid back LDS where everyone from instructors to DM's just really likes to dive and enjoys seeing other people's eyes opened up to the wonderment of the underwater world. Everyone new that comes into the group through various trips for certs or just a jaunt down to the coast seems to fit in. I think most of this is due to the mentality of the instructors/DM's that I just mentioned.

 

[soggybadger]

If you want to see unbridled arrogance join an Archery club in the UK, preferably one that has some traditional English 'Longbow' proponents.

You are not wrong there. The look on their faces when I start banging away with my mathews is often one of disgust.

 

[Bogtrotter]

There's a bit more machismo in diving than some of the other sports I've been involved with but I'm seeing it less. More women diving has helped a lot there. I recently encountered an older male diver who was very patronizing to female divers- to the point where one of the women stopped diving for a couple of days until he left- pathetic and fortunately a dying breed.

 

[northernone]

You are not wrong there. The look on their faces when I start banging away with my mathews is often one of disgust.

Humor me with a translation? Let's just say 'banging away with my mathews' means something different this side of the pond... Though the disgust on the faces is the same result I suspect.

Bringing my comment back on topic, I wonder if some of the perceived arrogance is subculture or personality differences? I think of some professional sports, and some humble guys will smack talk and front as loudly as the most privately arrogant guy there, it's a part of the game.

I wonder if some dive groups, social media interactions or instructors might unintentionally promote this in diving. It's a tough sport to 'win' in but some people try.

On the global perspective, some entire cultures have a style of presentation and communication that are perceived as arrogance by another cultures. Some areas within the States as well for example.

And yes, some downright arrogant divers exist.

Cheers,
Cameron

 

[soggybadger]

Humor me with a translation? Let's just say 'banging away with my mathews' means something different this side of the pond... Though the disgust on the faces is the same result I suspect.

Bringing my comment back on topic, I wonder if some of the perceived arrogance is subculture or personality differences? I think of some professional sports, and some humble guys will smack talk and front as loudly as the most privately arrogant guy there, it's a part of the game.

I wonder if some dive groups, social media interactions or instructors might unintentionally promote this in diving. It's a tough sport to 'win' in but some people try.

On the global perspective, some entire cultures have a style of presentation and communication that are perceived as arrogance by another culture. Some areas within the States as well for example.

And yes, some downright arrogant divers exist.

Cheers,
Cameron

Shooting my mathews bow better? I try not to do what I assume is the other meaning in a club environment. But you never know.

 

[gypsyjim]

There are always going to be arrogant peeps in every area of life. Diving is no exception.

Except for a rare exception, those exhibiting the most arrogance and intolerance of others, those bragging the loudest, or overly focused on having "the best"-whatever, are trying to cover their own lack.

Focus on being the best that you can be, be ready to listen, to learn, to share with others, and just let the jerks stew in their own venom and arrogance, it harms them more than those they look down on.

 

[soggybadger]

I experience the looks and comments about the age of my kit on a regular basis. The last four years we have been putting the wife through med school on my income alone as she was not eligible for a grant and as a result of this I have only had a small amount of money to spend on leisure activities. All my gear has been purchased used and a fair bit of it is over fifteen years old. On my recent deep cert my instructor didn't rate my computer because he hadn't ever seen one like it and didn't understand how to use it. It was only 10 years old!

 

[Hoag]

I have done some of the behaviour that was described by the OP as what could be seen asarrogance, but in my case, nothing could be further from the truth.

Two quick examples:

I am a vacation diver. I am also retired and living on a pension. Unfortunately it is not uncommon to go a year or more between dive trips. As a result, my air consumption the first couple days stinks! After a couple days, it gets better and by the end of a trip, I am often among the last back on the boat. When this happens, and I mention it, it is not because I am arrogantly bragging about being the last on the boat. It is mentioned because I am so happy to see things get back to what I consider "normal". Although some may interpret it as arrogance, in my case, I see it as exuberance.

The other example often occurs when discussing places where I have dove. Yes, I have dove in a lot of really cool places. Many of those places are what some might consider "bucket list trips". So what some people might hear as "I've been to Fiji, Socorro, Isla Guadeloupe, etc." what I am trying to say is that I was lucky enough to find a LDS that was run by someone who loved to travel. He organized some very cool trips and over the years I was fortunate enough to have been along with them when they went on some of these trips.

I am not giving everyone a free pass by any means. Of course there are people out there who are arrogant. (There are even one or two here on ScubaBoard for instance who like to pass off their opinion as though it is fact and hate it when someone dares to question their statements.) All I am saying is that sometimes enthusiasm can be misinterpreted as something else.

 

[Compressor]

I've enjoyed almost everything about diving since I started. I liked the classes, the novelty and newness of it all, and find an enduring enjoyment and sense of wonder in the underwater experience. There have been minor setbacks -- mistakes, dives that weren't fun, gear that didn't work out, times I felt I'd been ripped off -- but nothing serious or enduring.

Except the arrogance.

It was worst when I was considering diving and had just started. I ran into it at one of the LDSs, where the employee was not taking seriously my questions about gear since I had not completed my certification. I've run into it on boats and other groups of divers. So many divers want to talk about how deep they've dived, how little air they use, and other things that they perceive as accomplishments. Dealing with people in the dive industry, I've encountered egos so large they are incapable of entertaining the idea that, perhaps, they may have made a mistake at some point. I encounter technical divers, cave divers, and rebreather divers who seem to think that people curious about their specialty should be seen not heard.

I've always aspired to the sort of quiet competence demonstrated by airmen like Chesley Sullenberger, who was initially dismissive of his personal role in the safety of all on board when he was at the controls of the flight that had to ditch in the Hudson River.

What is it about the diving culture that leads to this sort of hubris?

@2airishuman: Thank you for your post. I don't claim to have all the answers; far from it, I have a few. I have noticed though that some divers see the sport as competition against fellow divers. We do live in a competitive society. I've discussed with fellow divers locally why they feel to compete all the time. Many just say that they feel they have to. Some of it is industry driven. Witness the trend for all of us to get "tech certified." We can enjoy diving without all this hubris. We can dive together, enjoying the friendship, companionship and love of diving irregardless of how much air we use, how deep we've gone, total # of dives.....

Personally, I walk away from divers who want to show off. To me they cannot be counted underwater to be a good buddy as their heads are just too big with ego.

Love diving and dive often. Its a fantastic opportunity available to us to enjoy nature.