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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 18, 2025

Reducing State Anxiety Using Working Memory Maintenance

Reducing State Anxiety Using Working Memory Maintenance

Published on: July 19, 2017

Anxiety impact on scuba performance and underwater cognitive processing ability.

Feng-Hua Tsai^1,2, Wen-Lan Wu³, Jing-Min Liang³

¹Center for General Education, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine

|June 20, 2020

Summary

High trait anxiety in scuba divers prolongs mask clearing and slows underwater cognitive processing. However, these effects did not impact the performance of other essential scuba diving skills.

Keywords:

Diving research Personality Psychology Scuba diving Training

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Area of Science:

Sport Science
Psychology
Human Performance

Background:

Anxiety is a significant factor in scuba diving, potentially affecting diver performance and cognition.
Understanding the impact of trait anxiety on diving is crucial for safety and skill optimization.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the relationship between trait anxiety and scuba diving performance.
To assess the effect of trait anxiety on underwater cognitive processing abilities.

Main Methods:

Twenty-seven divers were assessed for trait anxiety using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T).
Divers were grouped by anxiety scores (≥ 39 and < 39) and performed standardized skills in a pool.
Cognitive function was evaluated using the number-Stroop test, both on land and underwater.

Main Results:

Higher trait anxiety correlated with significantly longer mask clearing times (P = 0.04).
Divers with lower trait anxiety exhibited faster response times on the number-Stroop test, both dry (P = 0.04) and underwater (P < 0.01).
No significant impact of trait anxiety was found on other diving skills or their correlation with cognitive test results.

Conclusions:

Trait anxiety negatively affects specific scuba diving tasks, namely mask clearing and underwater cognitive function.
Despite impacts on cognitive processing and mask clearing, other scuba diving skills remain unaffected by trait anxiety levels.