Re: Correlation between emotional intelligence ,sailing ability and au
It's yet another American fad.
I've never found a correlation between any kind of intelligence and sailing ability. Some very intelligent people have absolutely no spatial awareness.
Huh? Too deep for me.
Do you mean sailors can't relate to other people, and intelligent people can't (or more likely don't) sail?
As a simple sailor perhaps this explanation will help.
In all seriousness if there is any research on this I'd be very interested in getting a look at. There is a school of thought that those on the autistic spectrum need alot of vestibular stimulation (sense of balance) etc which you might get from the boats motion on the sea. There are other autistic attributes which might be helpful are the heightened focus and singlemindedness of purpose. It's worth investigation as sailing might be a means of helping those on the spectrum
Being on the autistic spectrum myself and planning a move to sail, I too would be most interested...................but I have ADHD as well..........arse..........no Tourettes, mind. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
If this is a serious thread (I have my doubts!) then as the parent of an Autistic son, I would offer the following experiences. He has:
1) Excellent knowledge and recall of Collregs, Lights, Shapes, tides, courses etc
2) Can become easily distressed by loud noises, severe angles of heel, rough seas etc
3) Finds it hard to work as a team when tacking, coming alongside etc
As a parent I encourage him to come sailing as an opportunity to 'get out' and experience the open air and to interact with some other people. All things he doesn't do naturally.
I recognise there is a large element of tongue in cheek in earlier responses but my question is serious as I wondered whether the motion might help vestibular stimulation, whether routine is a factor and the lack of extraneous stimulation at sea (e.g. noises and smells) that can kick things off are a help. I also know that there are anumber of forumites who get involved with special needs kids (e.g. Kids day out) and whether they have any observations. I also ask the question as a parent of a child on the spectrum too. Your response is useful and will help me watch out for flashpoints !
Thanks
Sorry, just to add, flash points, the life jacket and safety harness,
Heeling, gybing and sudden changes of course, difficulty in getting ones bearings after a tack,
Small confines such as the heads,
The frustration of not being able to move about so easily when heeled
Routines being completely changed
I love the skilfully disguised sexism in your negative correlation. But while it strikes a chord in the deeper reaches of my unreconstructed misogynist prejudices, I'm not convinced that there is objective evidence for it.
If there is indeed such a negative association, I suggest that it is indirect. The confounder is the competitive tendency which is more directly associated with sailing ability and less prominent among those with emotional intelligence (i.e. women and girly men).
[/irony off] More intriguing is your implication that emotional intelligence and autism are at opposite ends of a linear scale. Here I struggle, because I have a relative who is severely autistic but who nevertheless impresses those around him with his affectionate nature. Then again, I suppose you could argue that warmth and affection are not the same thing as emotional intelligence.