Survey Results: Scuba Diving & Panicking

Dive industry survey conducted in relation to an InDEPTH Magazine article titled “Don’t Panic: Understanding the Causes and Remedies of Diver Panic”

Following the publication by Dr. Laura Walton of an article titled “Don’t Panic: Understanding the Causes and Remedies of Diver Panic” in InDEPTH Magazine, the Business of Diving Institute conducted a survey on panicking in scuba diving.

InDepth Magazine and the Business of Diving Institute collaborate on a series of scuba diving industry surveys to better understand where we stand on dive industry issues, identify workable solutions, increase awareness of opportunities, and, most notably, fuel discussions among dive professionals.

We thank the following scuba diving industry leaders for directly supporting this initiative: Shearwater, DAN Europe, and GUE. We also thank all of you who took part in these surveys and studies.

This post is part of our Dive Industry Compass series by the Business of Diving Institute and Darcy Kieran, author of:

TL;DR Overview

A recent survey conducted by the Business of Diving Institute in collaboration with InDepth Magazine, and supported by industry leaders such as Shearwater, DAN Europe, and GUE, reveals the significant prevalence of panic and near-panic incidents among scuba divers.

A substantial 69.0% of divers have experienced near-panic, where they were able to stay in control, while 11.8% have experienced full panic to the point of losing control.

This issue is not exclusive to novice divers or specific dive types, with incidents occurring in both recreational (78.6%) and tech diving (21.4%) and even among experienced divers with over 500 dives (17.7%).

Critically, more than one in four (25.6%) instances of panic or near-panic among divers occurred while they were receiving training, with the majority (53.7%) occurring at depths of less than 60 feet (18 meters).

Furthermore, the industry frequently encounters these situations, as a striking 67.0% of respondents have witnessed another diver in panic or near-panic, most commonly involving students or less experienced divers (59.8%) and predominantly at shallow depths (65.1%).

While 89.2% of personal panic instances resulted in no harm, 3.9% required rescue.

For tech diving instructors, 21.4% have dealt with a panicking student, leading 35.7% to refuse training to high-risk individuals.

These findings underscore the critical need for comprehensive instructor training in handling panic, recognizing its widespread occurrence across all experience levels and dive types, and emphasizing the importance of preparedness for all industry professionals.

Detailed Survey Results

How many scuba divers experienced panic or near panic?

Here is how many survey participants answered yes to the following questions & situations.

In parentheses is the percentage of tech divers who answered positively. In this context, “tech divers” include divers, instructors, and instructor trainers.

18.0%: Since you became a diver, have you ever taken a break from diving because you were experiencing panic or near panic when diving? (Tech divers: 13.7%)
16.5%: Since you became a diver, have you ever taken a break from diving because you believed you would be at risk of panic or near-panic? (Tech divers: 11.6%)
24.8%: Since you have been a diver, have you ever had repeated difficulties with high stress levels on dives? (Tech divers: 22.1%)
11.8%: During a dive, I experienced panic to the point of losing control of what I was doing. (Tech divers: 7.4%)
69.0%: During a dive, I experienced near-panic where I was concerned that I might panic, but I was able to stay in control. (Tech divers: 70.5%)

No matter how you look at these numbers, it appears that the topic of panicking while scuba diving cannot be ignored. It’s real!

What did their own panic of near-panic look like?

Among the survey respondents who indicated having experienced panic or near-panic, the average number of dives during which they experienced such was 4.5, while 26.9% of the respondents reported experiencing it only once.

For the following questions, survey participants were asked to think of the dive during which they experienced the most significant instance of panic or near-panic.

Once again, the first numbers represent the results from all survey participants, while the numbers in parentheses represent the results from tech divers. In this context, “tech divers” include divers, instructors, and instructor trainers.

In what form did they experience panic?

28.8%: Passive — A disconnection from what your body was doing, either freezing in place, or mechanically performing actions without being aware (tech divers: 32.8%)
71.2%: Active: An attempt to fight or escape from the situation (tech divers: 67.2%)

In what type of dive did the panic or near-panic happen?

21.4%: Tech diving, including rebreathers (tech divers: 61.4%)
78.6%: Recreational diving, excluding tech diving (tech divers: 38.6%)

Panic and near-panic happen in tech diving as well as in standard recreational diving.

What was the purpose of the dive during which they experienced panic or near-panic?

25.6%: Receiving Training (tech divers: 22.4%)
3.5%: Providing Training (tech divers: 5.2%)
3.5%: Guiding Other Divers (tech divers: 0.0%)
58.6%: For Recreational Purposes (tech divers: 56.9%)

More than one out of four divers who experienced panic or near-panic did so while receiving training. It appears that developing scuba diving instructors’ ability to deal with a panicking student should be an important area of career development training.

What was their role in the dive during which they experienced panic or near-panic?

10.4%: Instructor, leader, or more experienced member of the team (tech divers: 10.3%)
38.1%: Student or less experienced member of the team (tech divers: 24.1%)
51.5%: Diver as part of a team with divers of similar ability (tech divers: 65.5%)

At what depth did they experience panic or near-panic?

53.7%: Less than 60 feet / 18 meters (tech divers: 41.4%)
27.1%: Between 60 feet / 18 meters and 100 feet / 30 meters (tech divers: 19.0%)
12.8%: Between 100 feet / 18 meters and 130 feet / 40 meters (tech divers: 20.7%)
6.4%: More than 130 feet / 40 meters (tech divers: 19.0%)

What was the outcome of their panic or near-panic?

Respondents could select more than one answer.

1.5%: Injury (tech divers: 1.7%)
3.9%: Needed to be rescued (tech divers: 3.5%)
89.2%: Was OK / No harm (tech divers: 89.7%)
17.7%: Other (tech divers: 17.2%)

How many dives had they done prior to their panic or near-panic?

46.8%: Less than 100 (tech divers: 24.1%)
23.2%: 100 or more, but less than 250 (tech divers: 22.4%)
12.3%: 250 or more, but less than 500 (tech divers: 20.7%)
17.7%: 500 or more (tech divers: 32.8%)

Even experienced divers with over 500 dives can experience panic while scuba diving.

About Witnessing Panic or Near-Panic in Another Diver

Among survey respondents, 67.0% had witnessed panic or near-panic in another diver. That’s huge!

46.9% witnessed another diver experience panic to the point of losing control of what he/she was doing (tech divers: 52.5%)
44.8% witnessed another diver experiencing near-panic (tech divers: 50.0%)

For the following questions, survey participants were asked to think of the dive during which they witnessed the most significant case of another diver in panic or near-panic.

What form did the other diver’s panic or near-panic take?

22.8%: Passive — A disconnection from what your body was doing, either freezing in place, or mechanically performing actions without being aware (tech divers: 18.4%)
77.3%: Active: An attempt to fight or escape from the situation (tech divers: 81.6%)

In what type of dives did they witness another diver in panic or near-panic?

7.7%: Tech diving, including rebreathers (tech divers: 20.0%)
92.3%: Recreational diving, excluding tech diving (tech divers: 80.0%)

What was the role of the diver in panic or near-panic?

7.7%: Instructor, leader, or more experienced member of the team (tech divers: 6.0%)
59.8%: Student or less experienced member of the team (tech divers: 60.0%)
32.5%: Diver as part of a team with divers of similar ability (tech divers: 34.0%)

At what depth was the diver in panic or near-panic?

65.1%: Less than 60 feet / 18 meters (tech divers: 66.0%)
21.3%: Between 60 feet / 18 meters and 100 feet / 30 meters (tech divers: 12.0%)
9.5%: Between 100 feet / 18 meters and 130 feet / 40 meters (tech divers: 12.0%)
4.1%: More than 130 feet / 40 meters (tech divers: 10.0%)

What was the outcome with the diver in panic or near-panic?

Survey respondents could select all that applied.

3.0%: Injury (tech divers: 0.0%)
25.8%: Needed to be rescued (tech divers: 22.0%)
68.9%: Was OK / No harm (tech divers: 68.0%)
16.8%: Other (tech divers: 20.0%)

Panic & Near-Panic As Seen By Tech Diving Instructors

21.4% of tech diving instructors who responded to the survey reported having had a student in a state of panic or near-panic. Clearly, being ready to deal with panic and near-panic divers is important. It is part of the job.

35.7% of tech diving instructors who responded to the survey have refused to train a diver due to the risk that they may panic.

If you are a tech diving instructor, you have one chance out of five to have to deal with a student in panic. Are you ready?

This post only presented the quantitative analysis of the survey results. Follow Dr. Laura Walton for other analyses and discussions about panic and near-panic in scuba diving.

Who answered the survey on panicking & scuba diving?

674 scuba divers answered the call to take part in our survey on panicking in scuba diving. Many thanks to those of you who helped with this study!

Please take part in our other dive industry surveys or consult results from past surveys.

Participants lived in the following geographical regions:

Europe: 36.7%
Australia & New Zealand: 22.1%
USA: 20.5%
All other regions: 20.7%

Survey participants were from the following age groups:

18-24: 5.6%
25-34: 15.7%
35-44: 24.1%
45-54: 24.9%
55-64: 21.1%
65+: 7.6%

Survey participants were from the following genders:

Male: 51.0%
Female: 49.0%

As for their participation in the activity of scuba diving, here is how survey respondents defined themselves:

Recreational diver: 51.6%
Tech diver: 23.9%
Recreational diving instructor: 20.1%
Tech diving instructor: 4.1%

In the answer above, “instructor” included instructor trainers, while “recreational” excluded tech diving (which includes rebreather and cave diving). Overall, 27% of the respondents were tech divers or instructors.

Video Summary & Thoughts

Have a look at more scuba diving market research, surveys, reports & statistics in Your Dive Industry Compass.

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Survey Results: Scuba Diving & Panicking