Proposing and Validating a New Way of Construction Hazard Recognition Training in Academia: Mixed-Method Approach
Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 23, Issue 1
Abstract
The presented research proposes and experimentally validates a novel energy-based training module aimed at rapidly improving hazard-recognition skills in civil, environmental, and architectural engineering (CEAE) students. The module is based on the established theory that every construction hazard is fundamentally related to the unwanted release of one or more energy sources. Eighty-four members of a CEAE undergraduate class were participants during a three-week experiment. Adopting a rigorous A-B experimental design and validated protocol to measure hazard recognition, the study found the module increased students’ hazard-recognition skills by 67.8% on average (p < 0.001), with a lasting effect over time, while a standard lecture based on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training was found to be not significantly effective. Qualitative feedback gathered in the form of textual learning logs corroborated the quantitative findings. The study findings suggest that OSHA training may be complemented with components of the proposed method to improve hazard-recognition levels.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
Agarwal, P., and Everett, J. G. (1997). “Strategies for construction contractors to reduce workers’ compensation costs.” J. Manage. Eng., 70–75.
Albert, A., Hallowell, M. R., and Kleiner, B. M. (2014a). “Emerging strategies for construction safety and health hazard recognition.” J Saf. Health Environ. Res., 10(2), 152–161.
Albert, A., Hallowell, M. R., and Kleiner, B. M. (2013). “Enhancing construction hazard recognition and communication with energy-based cognitive mnemonics and safety meeting maturity model: A multiple baseline study.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 04013042.
Albert, A., Hallowell, M. R., and Kleiner, B. M. (2014b). “Experimental field testing of a real-time construction hazard identification and transmission technique.” Constr. Manage. Econ., 32(10), 1000–1016.
Almén, L., Larsson, T. J., and Thunqvist, E.-L. (2012). “The influence of the designer on the risk of falling from heights and of exposure to excessive workloads on two construction sites.” Saf. Sci. Monit., 16(1), 2–7.
Bhattacharjee, S., Ghosh, S., Young-Corbett, D. E., and Fiori, C. M. (2013). “Comparison of industry expectations and student perceptions of knowledge and skills required for construction career success.” Int. J. Constr. Educ. Res., 9(1), 19–38.
BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics). (2011). “Occupational injuries/illnesses and fatal injuries profiles.” Washington, DC.
Carter, G., and Smith, S. D. (2006). “Safety hazard identification on construction projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 197–205.
CPWR (Center for Construction Research and Training). (2013). The construction chart book, 5th Ed., Silver Spring, MD.
Felder, R. M., Felder, G. N., and Dietz, E. J. (1998). “A longitudinal study of engineering student performance and retention v. comparisons with traditionally-taught students.” J. Eng. Educ., 87(4), 469–480.
Fleming, M. (2009). “Hazard recognition.” By design, American Society of Safety Engineers, Park Ridge, IL, 11–15.
Gambatese, J., and Hinze, J. (1999). “Addressing construction worker safety in the design phase: Designing for construction worker safety.” Autom. Constr., 8(6), 643–649.
Gosen, J., and Washbush, J. (2004). “A review of scholarship on assessing experiential learning effectiveness.” Simul. Gaming, 35(2), 270–293.
Haddon, W., Jr. (1973). “Energy damage and the ten countermeasure strategies.” Hum. Factors, 15(4), 355–366.
Haslam, R. A., et al. (2005). “Contributing factors in construction accidents.” Appl. Ergon., 36(4), 401–415.
Hinze, J. (1997). Construction safety, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Hinze, J., and Wiegand, F. (1992). “Role of designers in construction worker safety.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 677–684.
Jeelani, I., Albert, A., and Gambatese, J. A. (2017). “Why do construction hazards remain unrecognized at the work interface?” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 04016128.
Kolb, D. A. (2014). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development, Pearson FT, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Kolb, A. Y., and Kolb, D. A. (2005). “Learning styles and learning spaces: Enhancing experiential learning in higher education.” Acad. Manage. Learn. Educ., 4(2), 193–212.
Kvam, P. H. (2000). “The effect of active learning methods on student retention in engineering statistics.” Am. Stat., 54(2), 136–140.
Lim, C. P., Nonis, D., and Hedberg, J. (2006). “Gaming in a 3d multiuser virtual environment: Engaging students in science lessons.” Br. J. Educ. Technol., 37(2), 211–231.
Martin, R., Maytham, B., Case, J., and Fraser, D. (2005). “Engineering graduates’ perceptions of how well they were prepared for work in industry.” Eur. J. Eng. Educ., 30(2), 167–180.
Maxwell, M. T., Carney, R. N., Buchanan, E. M., and Deal, W. P. (2014). “The face-name mnemonic strategy: Learning face-name pairs using abstract and concrete keywords.” Researcher, 26(1), 14–17.
Mills, J. E., and Treagust, D. F. (2003). “Engineering education—Is problem-based or project-based learning the answer.” Australas. J. Eng. Educ., 3(2), 2–16.
Mitropoulos, P., Abdelhamid, T. S., and Howell, G. A. (2005). “Systems model of construction accident causation.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 816–825.
Pinto, A., Nunes, I. L., and Ribeiro, R. A. (2011). “Occupational risk assessment in construction industry–overview and reflection.” Saf. Sci., 49(5), 616–624.
Prince, M. (2004). “Does active learning work? A review of the research.” J. Eng. Educ., 93(3), 223–231.
R [Computer software]. R Core Team, R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria.
Rozenfeld, O., Sacks, R., Rosenfeld, Y., and Baum, H. (2010). “Construction job safety analysis.” Saf. Sci., 48(4), 491–498.
Smallwood, J. (2002). “The need for the inclusion of construction health and safety (h&s) in architectural education.” Proc., 3rd Int. Conf. of CIB Working Commission, International Council for Building, South Africa, 3, 207–212.
Smart, K. L., and Csapo, N. (2007). “Learning by doing: Engaging students through learner-centered activities.” Bus. Commun. Q., 70(4), 451–457.
Stalder, D. R. (2005). “Learning and motivational benefits of acronym use in introductory psychology.” Teach. Psychol., 32(4), 222–228.
Tener, R. K. (1996). “Industry-university partnerships for construction engineering education.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract., 156–162.
Thaut, M. H., Peterson, D. A., McIntosh, G. C., and Hoemberg, V. (2014). “Music mnemonics aid verbal memory and induce learning-related brain plasticity in multiple sclerosis.” Front. Hum. Neurosci., 8, 1–10.
Tixier, A., Albert, A., and Hallowell, M. R. (2013). “Teaching construction hazard recognition through high fidelity augmented reality.” Proc., 2013 American Society of Engineering Education Annual Conf., American Society of Safety Engineers, Park Ridge, IL, 23.1139.1–23.1139.15.
Tixier, A. J.-P., Hallowell, M. R., Albert, A., van Boven, L., and Kleiner, B. M. (2014). “Psychological antecedents of risk-taking behavior in construction.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 04014052.
Tixier, A. J.-P., Hallowell, M. R., Rajagopalan, B., and Bowman, D. (2016a). “Application of machine learning to construction injury prediction.” Autom. Constr., 69, 102–114.
Tixier, A. J.-P., Hallowell, M. R., Rajagopalan, B., and Bowman, D. (2016b). “Automated content analysis for construction safety: A natural language processing system to extract precursors and outcomes from unstructured injury reports.” Autom. Constr., 62, 45–56.
Waehrer, G. M., Dong, X. S., Miller, T., Haile, E., and Men, Y. (2007). “Costs of occupational injuries in construction in the United States.” Accid. Anal. Prev., 39(6), 1258–1266.
Weinstein, M., Gambatese, J., and Hecker, S. (2005). “Can design improve construction safety?: Assessing the impact of a collaborative safety-in-design process.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 1125–1134.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 23 • Issue 1 • February 2018
Copyright
© 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 19, 2017
Accepted: Jun 16, 2017
Published online: Oct 12, 2017
Published in print: Feb 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Mar 12, 2018
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.