Mohammad Tanvi Newaz, Peter Rex Davis, Marcus Jefferies and Manikam Pillay
Safety climate (SC) is considered a leading indicator of safety performance, but scholars suggest that a common SC assessment framework is yet to be developed. Following the…
Abstract
Purpose
Safety climate (SC) is considered a leading indicator of safety performance, but scholars suggest that a common SC assessment framework is yet to be developed. Following the debate between the importance of facet analysis and agent analysis, the purpose of this paper is to test a factor structure, developed by the authors in previous work and arising from their systematic literature review, highlighting the role of safety agents in a construction site setting.
Design/methodology/approach
Multi-level SC surveys were conducted at five construction sites in Sydney, Australia, collecting data from of 352 workers associated with a mega-construction project. While examining the factor analysis of different studies, data reliability and data validity of the survey findings were ensured and a goodness-of-fit of SC model was examined through structural equation modelling.
Findings
The systematic literature review of Newaz et al. (2018) suggested a five-factor model of: management commitment, safety system, role of the supervisor, workers’ involvement and group SC. However, empirical data indicated that the questionnaire used to measure “safety system” failed to pass scale reliability; thus, a four-factor model was proposed to develop an agent-specific SC factor structure in the construction industry.
Originality/value
The four-factor model indicates the role and level of influence of different safety agents to improve safety perceptions on construction sites. The findings of this study will encourage researchers in construction safety to use the simplified four-factor SC (agent-specific) model presented and test it to further develop a common factor structure for the construction industry. The fact that the model is comprised of four factors makes further implementation somewhat easier in the development of safety plans, and when considering the role of safety agents, therefore enhancing its potential value.
Details
Keywords
Mohammad Tanvi Newaz, Peter Rex Davis, Marcus Jefferies and Manikam Pillay
Safety climate and its impact on safety performance is well established; however, researchers in this field suggest that the absence of a common assessment framework is a…
Abstract
Purpose
Safety climate and its impact on safety performance is well established; however, researchers in this field suggest that the absence of a common assessment framework is a reflection of the state of development of this concept. The purpose of this paper is to propose a five-factor model that can be used to diagnose and measure safety climate in construction safety research and practice.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review was adopted, and following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, 574 articles were selected at the start of the study based on a developed review protocol for investigating safety climate factors. While examining the factor analysis of different studies, data reliability and data validity of the individual research findings were considered and frequency of factors uploaded was used to determine the significance as a quantitative measure to develop the ranking of safety climate factors.
Findings
The review identified that, from the established measures of safety climate in construction, there is little uniformity on factor importance. However, management commitment safety system role of the supervisor; workers’ involvement and group safety climate were found to be the most common across the studies reviewed. It is proposed these factors are used to inform a five-factor model for investigating safety climate in the construction industry.
Originality/value
The findings of this study will motivate researchers and practitioners in safety to use the five-factor safety climate model presented in this paper and test it to develop a common factor structure for the construction industry. The fact that the model is comprised of five factors makes it easier to be used and implemented by small-to medium-sized construction companies, therefore enhancing its potential use.
Details
Keywords
Mohammad Tanvi Newaz, Marcus Jefferies, Peter Rex Davis and Manikam Pillay
Despite many studies that aim to argue, develop and position the concept of psychological contracts, few have explored how a psychological contract may be applied to safety in the…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite many studies that aim to argue, develop and position the concept of psychological contracts, few have explored how a psychological contract may be applied to safety in the construction industry. A psychological contract of safety (PCS) describes an individual's conceptualized belief that relates to mutual safety obligations, drawn from explicit or implicit promises of associated workers or its supervisor. This study investigates safety practices on construction sites through the lens of the widely applied and researched psychological contract theory emanating from a business paradigm.
Design/methodology/approach
The process of validating a PCS scale within the construction industry required the collection of data from a mega-construction project in Sydney, Australia. A quantitative methodology was used to collect data from 352 construction workers through a survey instrument designed to reveal their perception of procedures, policies and practices. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to ensure data reliability and data validity of the survey findings together with goodness of fit of PCS model.
Findings
The findings showed the presence of a PCS in a construction safety setting examined. A two-factor model underlying aspects, namely employer and employee obligations was recommended since the four-factor model, including relational and transactional components of both parties' safety obligations, could not be validated due to the discriminant validity associated with the particular constructs.
Originality/value
Conceptualizing the extant PC theory as a framework from which to leverage safety management initiatives brings a new approach to construction safety studies, revealing the influential role of supervisors in interpreting safety practices. The research aimed to identify safety obligations, which are influential in the development of PSC scale, further the research provides an explanation as to how a PCS may be contextualized in the construction industry.