Firm Size Influence on Construction Safety Culture and Construction Safety Climate
Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 26, Issue 4
Abstract
Smaller construction firms represent the majority of US construction firms. The safety record of smaller construction firms indicates a lower safety performance and higher incident rates than those found in larger construction firms. Therefore, there is a need for a greater understanding of the challenges that prevent smaller construction firms from achieving higher safety performance levels. Understanding these challenges will help construction safety practitioners and policymakers provide the necessary interventions to improve overall construction site safety. Data were collected from 275 construction practitioners in the US, resulting in scores for safety culture, climate, and behavior. The results suggest a statistically significant positive correlation between firm size and construction safety culture, which represents the safety-related actions of upper management and safety personnel. Thus, interventions that aim to develop sustainable safety and health management systems for smaller construction firms are necessary. On the other hand, the study indicates no statistically significant correlation between firm size and the construction safety climate, which represents the safety-related actions of field personnel (frontline supervisors and workers). These findings contribute to the body of knowledge by providing a meaningful understanding of the interventions needed to improve the overall safety performance of smaller construction firms.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 26 • Issue 4 • November 2021
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 9, 2020
Accepted: Apr 28, 2021
Published online: Jul 10, 2021
Published in print: Nov 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Dec 10, 2021
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