On the Ice: Individual and Group Adaptation in Antarctica

This paper summarizes four decades of research on the social, psychological, and cultural issues facing men and women who spend the austral winter under conditions of prolonged isolation and confinement in the Antarctic. Analyses of data collected from over 1,100 Americans who wintered-over between 1963 and the present are used to make the case that the process of psychosocial adaptation to isolation, confinement and extreme physical conditions exhibits four distinct characteristics. First, it is seasonal or cyclical in that variations in mood appear to be associated with the altered diurnal cycle and psychological segmentation of the mission. Second, it is situational in that concurrent measures of personality, interpersonal needs, and coping styles are better predictors of depressed mood and peer-supervisor performance evaluations than baseline measures. This is because of the unique features of the station social and physical environments and the absence of resources typically used to cope with stress elsewhere. Third, it is social in that individuals belonging to crews with a clique structure report significantly more depression, anxiety, anger, fatigue, and confusion than individuals belonging to crews with a core-periphery structure. Finally, it is “salutogenic” in that depressed mood is inversely associated with the severity of station physical environment and the winter-over experience is associated with reduced subsequent rates of hospital admissions, both supporting the existence of a positive effect for individuals seeking challenging experiences in extreme environments.