Bundesarchiv Bild 102-13014, Königswusterhausen, Pressefotograf auf Sendemast

To have a head for heights means that one has no

acrophobia Acrophobia is an extreme or irrational fear or phobia of heights, especially when one is not particularly high up. It belongs to a category of specific phobias, called space and motion discomfort, that share both similar causes and options for ...

, an irrational fear of heights, and is not particularly prone to fear of falling or suffering from

vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

, the spinning sensation that can be triggered, for example, by looking down from a high place. A head for heights is frequently cited as a requirement when mountain

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done ...

for a particular route as well as paragliding and hang-gliding. It is needed for certain jobs, such as for

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...

technicians, chimney sweeps,

roofer A roofer, roof mechanic, or roofing contractor is a tradesperson who specializes in roof construction. Roofers replace, repair, and install the roofs of buildings, using a variety of materials, including shingles, bitumen, and metal. Roofin ...

s, steeplejacks and

window cleaner Window cleaning, or window washing, is the exterior cleaning of architectural glass used for structural, lighting, or decorative purposes. It can be done manually, using a variety of tools for cleaning and access. Technology is also employed an ...

s. Mohawk ironworkers have worked for generations erecting

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

skyscrapers, though it is a myth they have an innate skill for doing so. Unlike acrophobia, a natural fear of heights is a normal phenomenon. When one finds oneself in an

exposed Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website Film and TV Film * ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film * ''Exposed'' (1932 ...

place at a great height, one feels one's own posture as unstable. A normal fear of heights can generate feelings of anxiety as well as autonomic symptoms like outbreaks of sweat.

Causes of fear of heights

There are logical biological causes of fear of falling. Firstly, there is the innate so-called "cliff edge phenomenon", whereby even toddlers, as well as many animals, avoid large drops, even without having previously had a bad experience.''Vertigo: Its Multisensory Syndromes''
by Thomas Brandt (2003), p. 422. Retrieved 1 Jun 2014. 3 Window Washers - Cleaning the Westlake Center Office Tower

3 Window Washers - Cleaning the Westlake Center Office Tower

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

itself is caused by a destabilization of the posture which, when it occurs at height, results from too large a distance from the eyes to the nearest visible solid object and is referred to as "distance vertigo" or "height vertigo". In order to see the object in space, the head starts to sway imperceptibly and "location reflex" then causes the body to sway with it. At the same time, the body stabilizes its position using the periphery of the

retina The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which the ...

, but when someone looks down they now lack this stabilizing factor. This

physiological Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemica ...

swaying is normally counteracted by the body's

vestibular system The vestibular system, in vertebrates, is a sensory system that creates the sense of balance and spatial orientation for the purpose of coordinating movement with balance. Together with the cochlea, a part of the auditory system, it constitut ...

and proprioceptive sense. However, for example, if there is damage to the

sense of balance The sense of balance or equilibrioception is the perception of balance and spatial orientation. It helps prevent humans and nonhuman animals from falling over when standing or moving. Equilibrioception is the result of a number of sensory syste ...

, in fact, the risk of falling is increased.

References

Literature

* Martin Roos: ''Wenn die Höhe zur Hölle wird''. In: DAV Panorama 1/2008, ISSN 1437-5923 * Pepi Stückl/Georg Sojer: ''Bergsteigen: Lehrbuch für alle Spielarten des Bergsteigens'', Bruckmann, Munich, 1996, {{Climbing navbox Climbing Hiking