ABSTRACT
This chapter examines more closely the resulting psychological problems and complexes that can sometimes arise from these types of dichotomies. It presents an overview of the British Airways Crewcare counseling service, which has been an integral part of the support process for cabin crew throughout the last twenty years. The role of a cabin crew member requires a certain type of individual who is able to combine a whole range of qualities. The culture of the organization is largely subjective, since it depends on the relative emotional maturity of the employee in determining how much responsibility they take for satisfying their own needs. As the individual attempts to deal with the splits that can occur, detrimental manifestations may include anxiety, panic attacks, stress, manic episodes and other depressive states. The attacks in America on September 11 served to nudge many individuals' deep-seated existential fears into awareness and heightened the need to support airline cabin crew across the world.
