Evaluating the Impact of Hazard Information on Fieldworkers’ Safety Risk Perception

Abstract

Construction is a hazardous industry due to the dynamic nature of the work environment. However, limited studies have investigated how the introduction of additional hazards affects construction fieldworkers’ perception of safety risks. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the influence of varying levels of hazard information on fieldworkers’ safety risk perception (SRP) for the OSHA “fatal four” hazards. A sample of 181 fieldworkers rated the severity and frequency of safety incidents for five construction work scenarios. The study found that as new hazards were introduced in the work scenarios, the fieldworkers had a significant change in their perception of risks for about 71% of the accident causes. They were able to assess safety risks related to slip, trip, fall; struck-by; caught-in or -between; electrocution; stepping on an object; fall to a lower level; and trapped-in by collapsing. However, they failed to perceive the risk of increasing the number of workers in a hazardous work environment, indicating that workers focus on the severity of the occurrence of accidents and do not pay attention to the workers present on the scene. This study provides new insight into the role of varying degrees of hazard information in situational awareness and highlights the need for additional research at the intersection of worker exposure and situational awareness. Additionally, results from the study could inform the development of safety training to enhance workplace safety.