BACKGROUND
Unsafe worker behaviour is often identified as a major cause of dangerous incidents in the petrochemical industry. Behavioural safety models provide frameworks that may help to prevent such incidents by identifying factors promoting safe or unsafe behaviour. A literature review was conducted to identify models of safe behaviour and determine which were most consistent with the experiences reported by workers in our qualitative study of the Iranian petrochemical industry.
OBJECTIVE
The aims of the current study are to conduct a literature review to identify theoretical models that have been proposed to explain and predict safe behaviour in the workplace between 2000 and 2019 and then select the model that best reflects our findings and other evidence on the factors influencing safe behaviours among petrochemical workers.
METHODS
Five databases (EBSCOhost, Google Scholar, ProQuest, Science Direct, Scopus) were searched for studies between 2000 and 2019 that evaluated antecedents and outcomes of safe workplace behaviours in the petrochemical industry or other industrial settings. After duplications were removed, 141 publications were screened and 31 that met the inclusion criteria were reviewed. Constructs described in each publication were assessed for consistency with themes derived from the interview responses from Iranian petrochemical workers in the qualitative study: poor direct safety management and supervision; unsafe workplace conditions; workers' perceptions, skills and training; and broader organisational factors.
RESULTS
The themes identified in the qualitative study most closely matched those in the model described by Wu et al. (2011): poor direct safety management and supervision matched with safety leadership and several subscales; unsafe workplace conditions matched with several subscales; workers' perceptions, skills and training matched with two subscales, and broader organisational factors matched with two other subscales. The model selected was the one that included the most constructs matching the themes identified in the qualitative study.
CONCLUSIONS
Valid behavioural safety models can provide a basis for more effective safety cultures and management systems in selected contexts. This study identified most consistency between themes elicited from Iranian petrochemical workers and the constructs described by Wu et al. (2011), providing evidence of the validity of their model. Intervention studies are needed to assess the effectiveness of safety models in improving safe behaviours in industrial settings.
CLINICALTRIAL
Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials: IRCT20170515033981N2. Retrospectively Registered 19 June 2018, https://www.irct.ir/trial/26107
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT
RR2-10.1186/s12889-019-7126-1
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