Personality characteristics in a population of mountain climbers.

Objective: Mountaineering and mountain-related sports are growing in popularity and are associated with significant risk of injury. There is a perception that mountaineers possess unique personality characteristics that attract them to the sport. We aim to determine whether there are any identifiable differences between the personality characteristics of experienced mountaineers and a normal control population and to determine whether there is an association between specific personality traits and risk of injury.

Methods: Questionnaires were utilized to obtain data on demographics, accidents, and personality characteristics from a population of experienced mountaineers. The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) was used, and the results were compared with normative data from age-matched controls.

Results: Forty-seven mountaineers from 8 different countries enrolled in the study. The mean age was 33 years, and 44 (90%) had been mountaineering for more than 5 years. Twenty-three climbers (49%) had been involved in a total of 33 accidents. Mountaineers scored higher on novelty seeking (P < .05) and self-directedness (P < .05) and lower on harm avoidance (P < .001) and self-transcendence (P < .001). There was a significant association between the character measure of cooperativeness and the total number (-.33, P < .05) and severity (-.475, P < .05) of accidents.

Conclusions: Mountaineering is associated with significant risk of injury. Wide variation in the scores of personality traits suggests that there is not a tightly defined personality profile among mountaineers. Scores on cooperativeness may assist in determining risk of injury in mountaineers.