Issue 4
Vol. 44
2002

Performance of vigilance during a hyperbaric chamber dive related to preferred coping strategies: A Pilot Study
Gabriele Dietmaier, Udo Anegg

Summary
This study was carried out to contrast the relationship between preferred coping strategies measured with the SVF 78 and the performance in a vigilance test (d2) before and during a hyperbaric chamber dive at a depth of 50 m (6 ata). As a remarkable result the performance of concentration showed a significant relation (F_1,10=19.895, p=.001) between factor time (before vs. during dive) and group (control vs. concernment/capitulation). It revealed that the totally edited marks increased significantly (F_1,10=18.23, p=.002) as well as the number of omissions (F_1,10=13.126, p=.005) and total mistakes (F_1,10=15.629, p=.003) rose during the dive. Subjects with adequate stress coping mechanism (high values in factor control of the SVF 78) seemed to be more concentrated and vigilant under the stressful conditions in a hyperbaric environment whereas those with higher scores in negative stress coping strategies (SVF 78) show a significant decrease of the performance of attention.

Key words: vigilance, coping strategies, hyperbaric chamber


Mag. Gabriele Dietmaier
Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz
Institut für Psychologie
Abteilung für Klinische Psychologie und Gesundheitspsychologie
Universitätsplatz 2/III
A-8010 Graz
Tel.: 0043-316-380-8519
Fax: 0043-316-380-9808
e-mail: gabriele.dietmaier@uni-graz.at