Exploring the Relationship between Safety Climate and Worker Safety Behavior on Building Construction Sites in Taiwan

Wei Tong Chen, Hew Cameron Merrett, Ying-Hua Huang, Theresia Avila Bria and Ying-Hsiu Lin
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Wei Tong Chen: Graduate School of Engineering Science and Technology/Department of Civil and Construction Engineering, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Yunlin 64002, Taiwan
Hew Cameron Merrett: Graduate School of Engineering Science and Technology, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Yunlin 64002, Taiwan
Ying-Hua Huang: Department of Civil and Construction Engineering, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Yunlin 64002, Taiwan
Theresia Avila Bria: Graduate School of Engineering Science and Technology, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Yunlin 64002, Taiwan
Ying-Hsiu Lin: Engineering Technology Research Center, Department of Civil and Disaster Prevention Engineering, National United University, Miao-Li 360, Taiwan

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 6, 1-21

Abstract: Construction occupational accidents are often attributed to workers’ having an insufficient perception of how their actions influence safety in the construction site. This research explores the relationship between safety climate (SC) and personnel safety behavior (SB) of construction workers operating on building construction sites in Taiwan. The study discovered a significant positive relationship between SC and SB of Taiwan’s building construction sites, and in turn SC level had a positive impact on SB participation and overall safety perceptions. The higher the SC cognition of Taiwan’s building construction workers, the better the performance of SB was found to be. The dimension of "safety commitment and safety training" had the greatest relationship with SB. Safety training also had a deep impact on the cognition of SB. Therefore, the organizational culture and attitudes to safety coupled with the successful implementation of safety education and training can effectively enhance SC and worker SB on building construction sites in Taiwan, thereby potentially reducing the impacts of the underlying organizational factors behind safety related incidents.

Keywords: building construction; construction occupational accidents; safety climate; safety behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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