138
E. Bigando
to fuel a far-reaching exploration of the notion of ‘underwater landscape’ and provide
the building blocks of more specific research projects into representations of such
landscapes in the Arcachon Basin, where a project for a Natural Marine Park is
currently under way.
This article will first discuss the precise terms of the survey itself, before going
on to show how usage of the concept of underwater landscape is indeed replete with
meaning for divers, by shedding light not only on the different connotations and
denotations the term has for them, but also on the experiences it offers.
9.2 Questions on the Underwater Landscape: General
Considerations About the Diver Survey
In order to better define the concept of ‘underwater landscape’, a preliminary survey
was addressed to a number of divers. The aim was to gauge the pertinence and define
the meaning of this concept for them as first-hand users, perhaps the only ones, of
the submarine world.
The survey was carried out as part of a cooperation agreement between research
laboratory ADES and the Agence des Aires Marines Protégées (under the aegis of
the assignment manager, Olivier Musard), and received the support of the FFESSM
(Fédération Française d’Etudes et Sports Sous-Marins) and MNHN (Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle). It was addressed to divers during two events, held
simultaneously in Paris, during the weekend of 16–17 January 2011—at the FFESSM
stall at the Paris International Dive Show, and during a two-day course organised by
the MNHN on the theme of ‘Discovering and Protecting the Marine Environment
through Diving.’
In order to encourage a maximum number of divers to answer the survey, we
decided that the questionnaire should contain only two open questions (Fig. 9.1),
and encouraged them to complete their answers in situ.
A total of 78 people answered the survey—28 during the two-day course run
by the MNHN, and 50 at the International Dive Show. There were 76 divers (the
2 non-divers were removed from our analysis), with 16 of them being underwater
photographers. Ages ranged from 17 to 77, gender distribution was practically equal,
and all levels of diving proficiency were represented.
As for the profile of the participants, three main points are worthy of note. While
the women who participated in the survey were generally younger than the men (with
an average age of 43 for the women, and 50 for the men), the overall average age
was relatively high (Table 9.1), the majority of the participants having had extensive
diving experience. Indeed, despite a marked difference in the age at which men and
women had taken up the activity (on average the women had been diving for 16 years,
and the men for 23 years), it is important to highlight the fact that almost 80 % of the
total number of participants had been diving for over 10 years, and 46 % for more
than 20 years (Table 9.2). All levels of proficiency are represented, with a majority
of survey participants having attained a level of competency equal or superior to
Level 3 (Table 9.3).
E. Bigando
to fuel a far-reaching exploration of the notion of ‘underwater landscape’ and provide
the building blocks of more specific research projects into representations of such
landscapes in the Arcachon Basin, where a project for a Natural Marine Park is
currently under way.
This article will first discuss the precise terms of the survey itself, before going
on to show how usage of the concept of underwater landscape is indeed replete with
meaning for divers, by shedding light not only on the different connotations and
denotations the term has for them, but also on the experiences it offers.
9.2 Questions on the Underwater Landscape: General
Considerations About the Diver Survey
In order to better define the concept of ‘underwater landscape’, a preliminary survey
was addressed to a number of divers. The aim was to gauge the pertinence and define
the meaning of this concept for them as first-hand users, perhaps the only ones, of
the submarine world.
The survey was carried out as part of a cooperation agreement between research
laboratory ADES and the Agence des Aires Marines Protégées (under the aegis of
the assignment manager, Olivier Musard), and received the support of the FFESSM
(Fédération Française d’Etudes et Sports Sous-Marins) and MNHN (Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle). It was addressed to divers during two events, held
simultaneously in Paris, during the weekend of 16–17 January 2011—at the FFESSM
stall at the Paris International Dive Show, and during a two-day course organised by
the MNHN on the theme of ‘Discovering and Protecting the Marine Environment
through Diving.’
In order to encourage a maximum number of divers to answer the survey, we
decided that the questionnaire should contain only two open questions (Fig. 9.1),
and encouraged them to complete their answers in situ.
A total of 78 people answered the survey—28 during the two-day course run
by the MNHN, and 50 at the International Dive Show. There were 76 divers (the
2 non-divers were removed from our analysis), with 16 of them being underwater
photographers. Ages ranged from 17 to 77, gender distribution was practically equal,
and all levels of diving proficiency were represented.
As for the profile of the participants, three main points are worthy of note. While
the women who participated in the survey were generally younger than the men (with
an average age of 43 for the women, and 50 for the men), the overall average age
was relatively high (Table 9.1), the majority of the participants having had extensive
diving experience. Indeed, despite a marked difference in the age at which men and
women had taken up the activity (on average the women had been diving for 16 years,
and the men for 23 years), it is important to highlight the fact that almost 80 % of the
total number of participants had been diving for over 10 years, and 46 % for more
than 20 years (Table 9.2). All levels of proficiency are represented, with a majority
of survey participants having attained a level of competency equal or superior to
Level 3 (Table 9.3).