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Hello Captain Lim,
It's a real pleasure going through your site. I'm more than happy to be in your mailing list.
I'm a fearful flyer but my wife isn't. Most women I've come across aren't afraid of flying.
Do men fear flying more than women? It may sound silly but most women I've come across aren't fearful flyers and most men I know, fear flying. Can this be attributed to hormonal difference? A "yes" would mean, the next time my wife mocks my fear, I could as well say, "Hey, I'm a man - I should be scared of flying :-)"
Thanks,
Amit
Hi Amit,
It is not exactly true to say that more men than women are fearful of flying. It is just that each, at different ages, looks at fears from a different perspective. Lucas van Gerwen, a psychologist from the University of Leiden in Holland, says that, men are most scary of the aircraft not being properly controlled. Yes, they are also afraid of heights too!
Women, on the other hand, are generally claustrophobic and are afraid that the aircraft would crash. They are also very fearful that their plane may be hijacked. It is difficult to say outright that any one gender is more fearful than the other but we are reasonably certain that, about four out of ten people are fearful of flying to a certain degree.
Mr van German studied 5000 fearful flyers of both sexes. He identified them into 4 distinct groups. Firstly, they were men around 35 years, who were afraid because they feel that they have no control over the plane when things go wrong. Secondly, women below 35 years who were afraid that their planes may be hijacked and worried that they would become hysterical. Then there is another group, women, aged between 32 to 54, who are afraid of confined spaces (claustrophobia) . They are prone to panic attacks and become very apprehensive as soon as the cabin doors are closed. The fourth group - the most fearful flyers - is particularly men above 54 years.
Older people are generally afraid of heights and it is not clear why different people react differently. I am not sure if it was due to hormonal differences but research by van Gerwen has shown that some women are also fearful of confined spaces or being hijacked. Tell your wife that she is lucky to be a fearless flyer but it is normal for you to be a little scary sometimes. With knowledge and all the FAQ in "Fear of Flying", you can be like her too!
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