Yes--example is everything. Until just a few years ago, it was common for dressage riders to never wear helmets unless showing (where they were required at lower levels, but not FEI classes, where tophats were worn). We don't jump, so people convinced themselves that it was "safe" to ride bare, and you simply NEVER saw a pro in a helmet. There was an implicit suggestion that if you wore a helmet, it was because you weren't a good rider. I have worn one for years, because I'm very fond of my brain, but I was in the minority.
Then an internationally known rider (wearing no helmet) had a TBI when the horse she was riding tripped. She recovered enough to be able to speak ( garbled) and to walk (with difficulty). She can no longer ride. Suddenly everyone was talking about helmets. Within 3 years, helmets were required in ALL classes, including FEI level (at shows governed by the national org, anyway, although not those governed by international rules), and tophats were a thing of the past. Dressage magazines will now not publish pix of riders who are not wearing helmets. Pros are criticized online for not wearing them. The mere fact that we now see the big riders in helmets--in the mags, online, at the shows--has done what nothing else could have. It has made wearing helmets cool and NORMAL. In fact, while helmets are not required at international comps, peer pressure has worked there too, to the point where helmets are now more common than tophats. 3 years ago, you would never have seen that. Never.
So yeah--if people see paddlers they respect following safety rules, THEY are more likely to do it. If they see them ignoring them, they will too. We're herd animals, basically.
