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The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Safety Climate and Individual Safety Behavior on Construction Sites

Author

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  • Yuzhong Shen

    (Department of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
    College of Civil Engineering, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 200234, China)

  • Chuanjing Ju

    (School of Economics and Management, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China)

  • Tas Yong Koh

    (Department of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China)

  • Steve Rowlinson

    (Department of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China)

  • Adrian J. Bridge

    (Science and Engineering Faculty, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD 4001, Australia)

Abstract

Unsafe acts contribute dominantly to construction accidents, and increasing safety behavior is essential to reduce accidents. Previous research conceptualized safety behavior as an interaction between proximal individual differences (safety knowledge and safety motivation) and distal contextual factors (leadership and safety climate). However, relatively little empirical research has examined this conceptualization in the construction sector. Given the cultural background of the sample, this study makes a slight modification to the conceptualization and views transformational leadership as an antecedent of safety climate. Accordingly, this study establishes a multiple mediator model showing the mechanisms through which transformational leadership translates into safety behavior. The multiple mediator model is estimated by the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique, using individual questionnaire responses from a random sample of construction personnel based in Hong Kong. As hypothesized, transformational leadership has a significant impact on safety climate which is mediated by safety-specific leader–member exchange (LMX), and safety climate in turn impacts safety behavior through safety knowledge. The results suggest that future safety climate interventions should be more effective if supervisors exhibit transformational leadership, encourage construction personnel to voice safety concerns without fear of retaliation, and repeatedly remind them about safety on the job.

Suggested Citation

  • Yuzhong Shen & Chuanjing Ju & Tas Yong Koh & Steve Rowlinson & Adrian J. Bridge, 2017. "The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Safety Climate and Individual Safety Behavior on Construction Sites," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-17, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:14:y:2017:i:1:p:45-:d:86958
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Abdulrahman M. Basahel, 2021. "Safety Leadership, Safety Attitudes, Safety Knowledge and Motivation toward Safety-Related Behaviors in Electrical Substation Construction Projects," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-17, April.
    2. Xiuyu Wu & Hongping Yuan & Ge Wang & Shuquan Li & Guangdong Wu, 2019. "Impacts of Lean Construction on Safety Systems: A System Dynamics Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-16, January.
    3. Marchel Bentoy & Marlon Mata & Jayson Bayogo & Roel Vasquez & Rose Mary Almacen & Samantha Shane Evangelista & Charldy Wenceslao & Jannen Batoon & Maria Diana Lauro & Kafferine Yamagishi & Gamaliel Go, 2022. "Complex Cause-Effect Relationships of Social Capital, Leader-Member Exchange, and Safety Behavior of Workers in Small-Medium Construction Firms and the Moderating Role of Age," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-24, September.
    4. Xun Liu & Xiaobo Li, 2022. "Exploring the Formation Mechanism of Unsafe Construction Behavior and Testing Efficient Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Programs," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-19, February.
    5. Xuecai Xie & Jun Hu & Gui Fu & Xueming Shu & Yali Wu & Lida Huang & Shifei Shen, 2023. "Investigation of Unsafe Acts Influence Law Based on System Dynamics Simulation: Thoughts on Behavior Mechanism and Safety Control," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-30, March.
    6. Zheng Zhu & Jingfeng Yuan & Qiuhu Shao & Lei Zhang & Guangqi Wang & Xuewei Li, 2020. "Developing Key Safety Management Factors for Construction Projects in China: A Resilience Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-20, August.
    7. Yunfeng Sun & Hao Yang & Xiang Wu & Yifeng Jiang & Chongyang Qian, 2022. "How Safety Climate Impacts Safety Voice—Investigating the Mediating Role of Psychological Safety from a Social Cognitive Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-17, September.
    8. Fatima Afzal & Roksana Jahan Tumpa, 2024. "Exploring Leadership Styles to Foster Sustainability in Construction Projects: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-32, January.
    9. Yolanda Navarro-Abal & Luis Carlos Sáenz-de la Torre & Juan Gómez-Salgado & José Antonio Climent-Rodríguez, 2018. "Job Satisfaction and Perceived Health in Spanish Construction Workers during the Economic Crisis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-14, October.
    10. Fahad M. Alqahtani & Muhammad Abas & Mohammed Alkahtani & Mubashir Hayat & Aasia Farrukh, 2024. "Enhancing Sustainable Safety Practices in Construction: Insights from Cultural and Socio-Economic Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-20, June.
    11. Huakang Liang & Ken-Yu Lin & Shoujian Zhang & Yikun Su, 2018. "The Impact of Coworkers’ Safety Violations on an Individual Worker: A Social Contagion Effect within the Construction Crew," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-21, April.
    12. Antonio José Carpio-de los Pinos & María de las Nieves González-García & Ligia Cristina Pentelhão & J. Santos Baptista, 2021. "Zero-Risk Interpretation in the Level of Preventive Action Method Implementation for Health and Safety in Construction Sites," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-23, March.
    13. Guodong Ni & Yuanyuan Zhu & Ziyao Zhang & Yaning Qiao & Huaikun Li & Na Xu & Yongliang Deng & Zhenmin Yuan & Wenshun Wang, 2020. "Influencing Mechanism of Job Satisfaction on Safety Behavior of New Generation of Construction Workers Based on Chinese Context: The Mediating Roles of Work Engagement and Safety Knowledge Sharing," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-24, November.
    14. Byung-Jik Kim & Se-Youn Jung, 2019. "The Mediating Role of Job Strain in the Transformational Leadership–Safety Behavior Link: The Buffering Effect of Self-Efficacy on Safety," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-14, April.
    15. Yuzhong Shen & Yadi Li & Chuanjing Ju & Hassan Ashraf & Zhen Hu & Changquan He & Shoeb Ahmed Memon, 2023. "Foundational Effects of Organizational Climate on Perceived Safety Climate: A Multiple Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-15, November.
    16. Wei-Li Wu & Yi-Chih Lee, 2020. "Do Work Engagement and Transformational Leadership Facilitate Knowledge Sharing? A Perspective of Conservation of Resources Theory," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-17, April.
    17. Chiyin Chen & Xinyi Ding & Jiachen Li, 2021. "Transformational Leadership and Employee Job Satisfaction: The Mediating Role of Employee Relations Climate and the Moderating Role of Subordinate Gender," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-14, December.
    18. Junjie Zhang & Huaiyuan Zhai & Xiangcheng Meng & Wanxue Wang & Lei Zhou, 2020. "Influence of Social Safety Capital on Safety Citizenship Behavior: The Mediation of Autonomous Safety Motivation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-19, January.
    19. Ibrahim Mosly & Anas A. Makki, 2020. "Safety Climate Perceptions in the Construction Industry of Saudi Arabia: The Current Situation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-16, September.
    20. Ibrahim Mosly & Anas A. Makki, 2021. "The Effects of Multi-Sociodemographic Characteristics of Construction Sites Personnel on Perceptions of Safety Climate-Influencing Factors: The Construction Industry in Saudi Arabia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-16, February.
    21. Qingfeng Meng & Wenyao Liu & Zhen Li & Xin Hu, 2021. "Influencing Factors, Mechanism and Prevention of Construction Workers’ Unsafe Behaviors: A Systematic Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-22, March.
    22. Mengjie Li & Huaiyuan Zhai & Junjie Zhang & Xiangcheng Meng, 2020. "Research on the Relationship Between Safety Leadership, Safety Attitude and Safety Citizenship Behavior of Railway Employees," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-17, March.
    23. Huakang Liang & Tianhong Liu & Wenqian Yang & Fan Xia, 2022. "Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Perception on Job Stress of Construction Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-14, August.

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