I’ve long been critical of the construct, and application of, ‘safety culture’ (at best, I’d probably be described as from the interpretive camp—e.g. ‘culture-as-metaphor’). I’ve covered lots of articles why – and others have argued far more nuanced reasons. So, I’m not covering that now. But in saying that, I’ve always found the following definition… Continue reading Safety Culture or: How cultures can both sensitise or blind us to danger
Tag: safety culture
Safety climate and fatigue have differential impacts on safety issues: Safety climate, fatigue, and safety issues
This study explored the role of safety climate and fatigue on safety issues and outcomes, based on survey of >11k US naval personnel. Note: Self-reported data. They found: · “Results indicated a differential effect on the relationship between safety climate and safety outcomes; that is, safety climate affected underreporting the most, followed by likelihood of experiencing… Continue reading Safety climate and fatigue have differential impacts on safety issues: Safety climate, fatigue, and safety issues
Why regulators Should Stay away from Safety Culture and Stick to Rules Instead
This banger chapter comes from an equally slapping book ‘Trapping Safety into Rules’. The authors argue why “regulators should stay away from safety culture”. Too much to cover, so just a few points. They open with “Ever since the Chernobyl catastrophe, safety culture has been invoked as a crucial discriminator between good and bad ways… Continue reading Why regulators Should Stay away from Safety Culture and Stick to Rules Instead
Examining the asymptote in safety progress: A literature review
This paper is highly recommended. I can’t do it justice as it covers a lot of material, but the authors argue that a range of safety practices and beliefs are linked to a plateau in safety performance improvements. Practices associated with compliance, control and quantification could be, at least partially, responsible for this inability to… Continue reading Examining the asymptote in safety progress: A literature review
The Use and Abuse of “Culture”
This well-known paper from Hopkins (found in several forms, book chapters, articles, presentations) critically challenges some core assumptions of safety culture. In short, directly quoting the paper: (1) Culture is a characteristic of a group, not an individual, and talk of culture must always specify the relevant group (2) Organisations have it within their power… Continue reading The Use and Abuse of “Culture”
Seeking a scientific and pragmatic approach to safety culture in the North American construction industry
This study from Sherratt, Szabo and Hallowell unpacked the concept of safety culture, with a focus on US construction. I’ve skipped heaps and can’t do this justice, so check out the full paper. Ultimately, they “argue for the elimination of safety culture from the safety science lexicon”. Background Off the bat they say: “It is… Continue reading Seeking a scientific and pragmatic approach to safety culture in the North American construction industry
The Shift from System to Individual in Safety Approaches
I found these extracts interesting from Foundations of Safety Science – summarising some key developments and interpretations from over a century of safety-scientific approaches. They observe that despite a myriad of approaches, and developments, “almost every approach seems to end up reverting, one way or another, to the people who work in that system”. As… Continue reading The Shift from System to Individual in Safety Approaches
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