Feelings of belonging and inclusion within a group are a tonic to frequently cited issues among seafarers such as isolation, boredom and inactivity. An important part of this is the creation of community and camaraderie onboard.

What is a community?

The Oxford Dictionary defines a community as ‘a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common’ or ‘the condition of sharing or having certain attitudes and interests in common’.

From this alone we can already start to see how it is applicable to the life of the seafarer.

The relationships, interactions and support which seafarers provide to each other onboard are vitally important.

Sadly there are often concerns that there is too little interaction onboard these days. Seafarers are criticised for heading back to their cabins and keeping themselves to themselves.

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Cabin fever

When work feels more enjoyable, then time goes quicker. Things feel more positive, and the sense of achievement magnified. That applies even more at sea when distance from family and friends can put a strain wellbeing. So making sure that seafarers feel part of something while onboard can make a real positive difference.

That said, there are many barriers and challenges to be overcome to help ensure a community onboard, and to put a little enjoyment back into seafaring. Smaller crew numbers indeed make it harder to have the same levels of interactions that seafarers did in the past. The fact that communal spaces have changed too also plays a part.

It should also be remembered that with shorter trips and fewer bonding experiences ashore, the community building onboard does suffer. It is also a fact that everyone carries too much – in your average e-reader, you can have more books than can be read, and on most hard drives more music than can be listened to even in one trip. With game consoles in the mix too, it is perhaps no wonder people can retreat into themselves, via their cabin.