Attention Failures Cause Workplace Accidents: Why Workers Ignore Hazards and What To Do About It

Abstract

Accidents readily occur when workers are not attentive to the hazards of their work. For some professionals, such as workers in the construction and mining industry, exposure to workplace hazards occurs on a daily basis. Such repetitive exposure to workplace hazards poses unique challenges for the attention of workers. This review explores how, in the absence of negative consequences, repetitive exposure to hazards decreases attention to them. Recommendations, informed by the science of attention, suggest how to combat the tendency to ignore frequently-exposed hazards and restore worker vigilance, thereby reducing the frequency of workplace accidents. Experiential training incorporating virtual reality holds some promise.