Mountaineers' Emotional Reactions to Accident Risks

Author : Aydogan Soyguden

Abstract : Mountaineering is an activity that carries a risk of accidents. Therefore, it is important to take the necessary precautions against accident risks. This study was conducted to determine the emotional reactions of mountaineers to accident risks. A survey containing demographic questions and emotional reactions to accident risks was prepared for the study. Ethical principles were observed during the survey question preparation process, and the opinions of expert academics in the field were consulted. The prepared survey form was applied to mountaineers who are interested in mountaineering at a professional level on the Google Forms Survey. Participants from various age, gender, and occupational groups (n=81) participated in the study. Frequency and percentage distributions of the data were obtained. Chi-square correlations were examined for significant relationships between demographic information and questions regarding emotional reactions to accident risks. The licensed SPSS 23 program was used for statistical analyses of the study, and a p value of <0.05 was obtained. The participants consisted of (85.2%) male and (14.8%) female; (59.3%) were university graduates, (39.5%) were between 41-50 years old; (28.4%) were public officer; (72.8%) reported participating in a sport other than mountaineering, (27.2%) having been mountaineering for 2-5 years, and (%38.3) having experienced an accident during mountaineering. (33.1%) of participants stated that they participated in mountaineering activities for a healthy lifestyle, while (27.3%) stated that they wanted to climb summits. The question asked participant, "What is the first emotional state that comes to mind when you feel like you can't do mountaineering?" question, (41.1%) of participants responded that "The friends in the group think that I couldn’t do it". According to participant gender; their responses to the question of the "What is the first emotional state that comes to mind when you feel like you can't do mountaineering?" a chi-square analysis significant correlation was founded p<0.05. As a result, it was determined that climbers continued their activities despite feeling uneasy about the emotional reactions of other group members to the risk of accidents. In particular, male climbers were more likely than female climbers to continue their activities due to emotional reactions. When climbers are unable to manage their emotional factors, they are more likely to encounter accident risks.

Keywords : Mountaineering athletes, accident risks, emotional reactions.

Conference Name : International Conference on Performance Monitoring and Injury Risk Assessment in Sports (ICPMIRAS - 26)

Conference Place : New York, USA

Conference Date : 4th Feb 2026