One of the key lessons in diving is that anyone can end a dive at any time for any reason, no questions asked, yet making that call can be tough due to unspoken pressures. This episode explores how inferred peer pressure, desire for group belonging, and risk-taking in “losing situations” all affect a diver’s willingness to thumb a dive. Through stories and research, we discuss how factors like fatigue, previous lost dive opportunities, and good visibility can cloud judgment, making it harder to call off a dive. Recognizing these influences and discussing them in debriefs can help divers build confidence in prioritizing safety over peer expectations.

Original blog: https://www.thehumandiver.com/blog/why-is-it-so-hard-to-thumb-a-dive-or-end-something-that-you-have-committed-to

Links: Paletz’s research about pilots in Alaska: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Socializing-the-Human-Factors-Analysis-and-Paletz-Bearman/58a0496739adb8778b3f95cf53e9016f15dcf8e6

Kahneman and Tversky’s research: http://psiexp.ss.uci.edu/research/teaching/Tversky_Kahneman_1974.pdf

Tags:  English, Gareth Lock, Human Factors