Please share your thoughts on my graduate research Scuba Diver Survey.

[Wookie]

@Erin Jaszczak , while your survey really was well constructed as someone else already said, the sunscreen question is one that could be improved. There was no option for "I don't use sunscreen." After reading all kinds of reviews and test results, both promising and skeptical, about supposedly reef-safe sunscreen, I decided the most conservative option is to cover myself sufficiently instead of using any sunscreen. If I had to use sunscreen out on the water, I suppose I would do my best to seek out an eco-friendly one.

Rash guards are the most eco-friendly sunscreen around, and now that I can wear a BUFF on my face for hours at a time, I guess I don't need face screen.

But I wear face screen anyway.

 

[tursiops]

I absolutely agree and really appreciate the feedback from several of you! That didn't come up in our design and testing of the survey so it may be a question that ends up being of no value for this study. Perhaps we'll use another iteration in the future. You provided some really valuable additional options that should have been included!

I too had a problem with that question, since I only use sunscreen on my nose and ears...and I use the zinc stuff. So I answered No...but that is not the whole story. The better question would be, do you use sunscreen, if so what kind, or, is it reef-safe?

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Good catch on the sunscreen question. I answered yes because when I do use sunscreen it is always a physical blocker ... zinc or titanium oxide. We not longer use any chemical blockers. Don't even have any in the house. However, when I dive I never use sunscreen. I use sunshirts, buffs, don't go barefoot, etc. Even at the beach we use very little sunscreen and choose sun clothing whenever possible.

 

[lowwall]

I did it and have a few comments on the survey questions.

- I also marked no because I don't use any sunscreen. Which reminds me of something I specifically look for when looking at dive ops, whether the boats have adequate shade. Perhaps this could be worked in somehow. I'd be happy if dive ops saw this as something worth investing in.

- On what MPAs I've dived in. I honestly have no idea except for the ones where you have to pay a separate fee as it's not something I specifically look for. But I absolutely am looking for places with excellent marine life. I don't believe this was a clickable option on any of the survey questions.
Depending on the specific survey goals, the focus on naming MPAs may or may not be capturing their impact on dive tourism.

The question on how many times you typically dive in a year. Is that trips or actual dives? It wasn't clear. I answered based on trips.

 

[boulderjohn]

This was much better than the usual such survey, most of which seem to already have a conclusion for which they are looking for supporting data.

As someone who has used surveys in the real world, I was struck by how much of this was open ended. This will make it much, much harder for you to quantify, but it allows people like me who have many outlier thoughts and opinions to express themselves freely. I therefore gave very extensive replies in the hope they would receive due consideration.

As for sunscreen, I have done 5 liveaboard trips to locations where I almost never saw a cloud, never wore sunscreen, and never got a tan. The roof of a diveboat has a very high SPF.

 

[Erin Jaszczak]

I did it and have a few comments on the survey questions.

- I also marked no because I don't use any sunscreen. Which reminds me of something I specifically look for when looking at dive ops, whether the boats have adequate shade. Perhaps this could be worked in somehow. I'd be happy if dive ops saw this as something worth investing in.

- On what MPAs I've dived in. I honestly have no idea except for the ones where you have to pay a separate fee as it's not something I specifically look for. But I absolutely am looking for places with excellent marine life. I don't believe this was a clickable option on any of the survey questions.
Depending on the specific survey goals, the focus on naming MPAs may or may not be capturing their impact on dive tourism.

The question on how many times you typically dive in a year. Is that trips or actual dives? It wasn't clear. I answered based on trips.

Thanks for completing the survey and for sharing the feedback. Much appreciated!

 

[Erin Jaszczak]

As someone who has used surveys in the real world, I was struck by how much of this was open ended. This will make it much, much harder for you to quantify, but it allows people like me who have many outlier thoughts and opinions to express themselves freely. I therefore gave very extensive replies in the hope they would receive due consideration.

As for sunscreen, I have done 5 liveaboard trips to locations where I almost never saw a cloud, never wore sunscreen, and never got a tan. The roof of a diveboat has a very high SPF.

Thank you, John!

 

[icechip]

Mud season or black fly season? Which spring?

Black flies finally thinning out