Developing construction hazard recognition skill: leveraging safety climate and social network safety communication patterns

Poor hazard recognition skill is a widespread issue in the construction industry. Therefore, an understanding of factors that influence the development of hazard recognition skill among workers is fundamental to effective safety management. Based on social learning theory which suggests that individuals learn efficiently by observing, interacting, and emulating others in workplaces, the current article reports findings from a larger study that examined the effect of safety climate and social-network safety communication patterns on the hazard recognition skill demonstrated by workers. More specifically, building upon previously reported findings presented in Pandit et al. which suggests that maintaining a more positive safety climate can lead to superior hazard recognition levels, the current article presents additional results examining the effect of safety climate and social-network safety communication patterns—maintained by workers—on the demonstrated hazard recognition skill. The study involved recruiting construction crews from 57 projects in the United States where safety climate and social-network safety communication data were gathered using questionnaire surveys—which was then followed by a hazard recognition activity. The results suggest that, apart from the safety climate, social-network safety communication patterns are positively related to the demonstrated hazard recognition skill. In addition, evidence of an interaction effect was found—suggesting that establishing a positive safety climate and maintaining higher levels of safety communication can yield synergistic benefits.