Without a reasonable degree of anxiety the person or organism would undoubtedly move into potentially harmful situations and either be injured or destroyed. There are, however, causes for anxiety that are only secondarily related to the drive for survival. These stimulate anxiety when there is no real possibility of injury or destruction. In either case, anxiety is present. And whether the basis for anxiety is one of potential harm or of possible embarrassment it should be considered, because it will affect the ability of the student to perform in his mobility training.
Some situations are obviously more dangerous.
Or they may seem potentially more dangerous to the new mobility student. One student may work quite well in a quiet neighborhood but seems to be afraid when he is asked to travel on busy streets. Another student works well in his own neighborhood but goes to pieces when he is taken to another location. Even the assurance of the instructor that there is no great difference between the two neighborhoods does not seem to help. Superficially, these two students might only seem to be inconsistent in their performance.