The "Skipper Effect": Riddles of Luck and Rhetorics of Individualism

The unresolved "skipper effect" debate of the 1980s and 1990s in maritime anthropology hinged upon a dispute over whether the learned skills and innate attributes of a commercial skipper influenced fishing success, measured in landed catch amounts, or whether success could be largely accounted for by boat size and other variables. In this paper, I argue that the questions raised in the debate would be served by considering that a significant source of fishing success is the result of the collective knowledge and synergistic efforts of a community of likeminded "individuals" rather than a continued search for the most effective way to isolate the achievements of lone operators. I argue that both shark fishermen in Bass Strait, Australia, as well as maritime anthropologists, allude to "luck," "chance," and other mystical explanations for fishing success or failure primarily in instances when no explanation for, or control over, success can be articulated. Further, I propose that references to "luck" and "chance" may mask the synergistic activity demonstrated by many successful fishermen (and recognized by the very scholars involved in the debate), and that this may help to explain why the "skipper effect" remains a riddle.