5 ms·
Airplane accidents are less frequent than car accidents or other modes of transportations but still it is so dramatic when one occurs. Maybe it is because of t
by anon2020dot00 5y ago
Airplane accidents are less frequent than car accidents or other modes of transportations but still it is so dramatic when one occurs.
Maybe it is because of the mass nature of it, in one stroke, a lot of people are killed compared to a car accident in which in each accident there are fewer parties involved.
- Barrin92 5y agoAlso the (almost) binary nature. To me with car accidents you have at least the illusion of having some control over the situation. That a plane can just drop you out of the sky and you sit there doomed has always fueled my phobia of flying a lot.
- evgen 5y agoDo you have a similar phobia when you are a passenger in an automobile? You have the same lack of control and a much higher risk profile...
- xboxnolifes 5y agoNot quite the same lack of control. You can reach over and grab the wheel.
- chii 5y agoLike how people fear nuclear power because of the accidents. Yet they do not fear coal, because it's so common place and looks unassuming.
- thawaya3113 5y agoI’m not sure what you mean by people not fearing coal. No one wants a coal plant anywhere near them. That’s why pretty much all thermal power plants are located in poorer areas across the globe where the local communities do not have much political power. You won’t find a single coal plant anywhere near where the richer people in a country live.
- sva_ 5y agoI think it may have to do with the fact that you're not directly responsible for the crash yourself. In a car, when you're driving it and have a crash, at least you had some control over it. At least that's how I feel about it, when sitting on a piece of metal flying through the sky, navigated by some person you've never met. Similarly, if we ever have self-driving cars, people will probably be very harsh on those systems, even if they're 1000x safer.
- JKCalhoun 5y agoAgree. It feels like "Roll you saving throw" every time you get on a plane. Self-driving car, the same. I know it may not be logical.
- elromulous 5y agoPeople love to say it's about control, but I have no control when I'm a passenger in a car (and have no anxiety there). For me at least, I think it's more about: 1. A plane can't just "pull over". 2. The number of fatal car crashes out of the number of car crashes, vs the number of fatal aviation accidents out of the number of aviation accidents. I.e. in a car, my brain is reassured that accidents, when they happen, aren't as likely to be fatal. This of course is illogical, as one ought to be concerned with simply the risk of death per mile, etc. But humans are far from perfect logic machines. I imagine kahneman and tversky have covered exactly this kind of bias at some point.
- krnlpnc 5y agoThat's true, although a car passenger does have the ability to see forwards, warn the driver of a problem, and request to be let out immediately if feeling uncomfortable.
- jgwil2 5y agoIf you're a car passenger and you see danger you can assist the driver in avoiding it. You likely know how to drive and are familiar with the procedures. In a plane you are completely disconnected from those in control, and unless you're a pilot or aviation buff you don't even really know what could go wrong.
- lamontcg 5y ago3. Fear of heights/falling.