A hierarchical factor analysis of a safety culture survey

Abstract

This clarification of the major factors emerging in the measurement of safety cultures should impact the industry through a more accurate description, measurement, and tracking of safety cultures to reduce loss due to injury.

Safety-Culture Exploration in Taiwan’s Metal Industries: Identifying the Workers’ Background Influence on Safety Climate

“…On the other hand, the organizational culture analysis methods also ranged from thorough and time-consuming ethnography to simple quantitative questionnaire surveys [19]. The questionnaire has some limitations for capturing every aspect of the safety culture [17], since predicting safety culture in a survey is not easy [20]. However, the questionnaire does show shared attitudes [11].…”

Knowledge Management – a Neglected Dimension in Discourse on Safety Management and Safety Culture – Evidence from Estonia

“…Previous collaborative research by the authors has shown empirically that many managers have started showing interest in safety performance and their conclusion is that intervention should be directed towards workers and worker behavior [27]; [28]. A safety culture (a sub-unit of organizational culture) does not have a unique and universal definition [4]. However, it can be defined as the product of the individual and group values, attitudes, beliefs, risk-perceptions [29], competencies, norms, principles, and patterns of behavior that determine the commitment of employees to health and safety, as well as the style and proficiency of an organization's health and safety programs [30].…”

“…Reviews of safety culture surveys identified some common aspects, for instance: management concern and commitment, personal responsibility, peer support for safety, employees' involvement in health and safety activities, and the SMS [4]; [21]; [24]. According to Cooper's model, the concept of safety culture contains three elements, which are related to people, their behavior and their interaction with the safety management system within an organization: internal psychological factors (safety climate), external observable factors -organization (SMS) and job (safety behavior) (see Fig.…”

“…According to Frazier [4] and Teo & Feng [9], management should encourage safe behavior of employees. Like previous research [35], this study suggests leadership (management and supervisors) should spend more time on the floor with employees and build trust, which is vital for the opportunity to convert tacit knowledge into explicit shared knowledge.…”

“…Attention in recent years has shifted towards better understanding of the psychological and social preconditions for worker's unsafe behavior and accident causation. Researchers and practitioners have shown increasing interest in safety culture and in the possibilities to maintain and improve it because of its impact on safety outcomes such as occupational accidents and fatalities, safety behaviors [4]; [5]; [6]; [7], absenteeism, productivity, work methods, quality, commitment, loyalty and work satisfaction [8]; [9]. Safety behavior is also one of the main issues (together with situations and person factors) identified in the model of safety culture as the key factor which is applicable to the accident causation chain at all levels of an organization [8]; [10].…”