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Employees working in human services are more likely to receive injuries on the job than in many other industries. Human service organizations that serve individuals who engage in dangerous behavior often require employees to adhere to safety guidelines, including utilizing protective equipment to minimize the risk of injuries. Despite protective equipment being prescribed in students' treatment plans at a private day school, employees were often observed working with students without the prescribed protective equipment. Results from a Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Safety assessment varied across three classrooms. Therefore, individualized treatment packages were implemented in each classroom. Results indicated increased use of prescribed protective equipment across all three classrooms and an overall decrease in staff injuries sustained by student contact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including process safety, work-related injuries and applied behavior analysis.

A recent prevalence of high visibility catastrophic events has garnered increased attention to process safety issues. While the use of Behavior-Based Safety interventions demonstrate a reduction in workplace injuries by targeting employee behavior, we believe that process safety requires a greater focus on the behavior of leaders (e.g., creating and executing strategy). One effective method to begin targeting leader behavior for the improvement of process safety is to teach leaders about the principles of behavior, including ways by which the science may be applied within their own organizational models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including process safety, work-related injuries and methods of behavior analysis.

An introduction is presented in which the editors discuss various reports within the issue on topics including process safety, work-related injuries and behavior analysis.

Complacency inhibits safe behaviors of workers and managers. This is of concern to industries where process safety is needed to reduce the chance of catastrophic events such as fires and explosions. A behavioral definition of complacency is offered as trending behavioral variation that eventually exceeds safety boundaries. Behavioral processes that contribute to these patterns of variability are discussed and analyzed, including habituation, extinction, unprogrammed reinforcement, the avoidance paradox, rule-governed behavior, and competing contingencies of production. Solution strategies are suggested that address this analysis of behavioral variance, including pinpointing behavioral variation related to safety, changing training design, strengthening positive reinforcement for process-related behaviors of workers and management, reducing sources of unprogrammed reinforcement for dangerous variation, strengthening rule-governed behavior, and changing contingencies for managers and executives whose decisions affect behavior and process safety at many levels in the company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Applying the science of human factors to eliminate error across all aspects of process design, management, operation, and maintenance has been a focus in the process safety area for many years. Human error has been attributed as a major cause of many high profile catastrophic accidents around the world. These accidents have resulted in national and international attention, which has led to a focus on improving organizational capabilities, systems, and in many cases, governmental regulations around human factors. This article provides a review of the field of human factors highlighting various topics in the literature, and introduces governmental regulatory bodies currently engaging organizations in a scientific approach to human factors. Finally, the need for integrating behavioral science methodologies with human factors is addressed. This is done with specific focus on how Organizational Behavior Management methodologies can work in concert with human factors to optimize process safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rate of occupational injuries has been declining annually, but the rate of decline for fatalities has not kept a similar pace. Behavior-based safety (BBS) contributes to reducing personal injuries, and can be applied to preventing serious incidents. To address serious injuries with greater confidence requires a change in perspective on the causes of fatalities and serious injuries. Heinrich’s safety triangle helps describe the ratio between minor incidents and major incidents, but is not adequate in helping topredictserious incidents. Adding a special subset to the safety triangle can assist safety practitioners in predicting and influencing such events. Extending the triangle to include more foundational root causes, such as leadership shortcomings and system failures, will expand the scope of the behavior analysis, and including greater specificity about the precursors to serious incidents will help the precision of the behavior analysis. The implications of the expanded triangle for amplifying the effectiveness of BBS for reducing serious incidents are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Process safety involves worker decisions at various points in an extended process, and much remains unknown regarding sources of variability in worker behavior at these decision points. This paper seeks to explain why some workers may be deviating from sanctioned policies and procedures. Risky choice is analyzed through discussion of positive and negative reinforcement, habituation in terms of respondent and operant behavior, risk discounting, and consequence dimensions that include a review of prospect theory, heuristics, and behavioral decision theory. Recommendations are made for improving our understanding of sources of variability in process safety by conducting systematic research on the perspectives reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to identify behavioral components active in process safety. Three types of behavior classes are identified as contributors to process safety: task-specific behaviors, safety-directed behaviors, and behaviors associated with situational awareness. Behavioral systems analysis is used to provide a framework for identifying the cross-functional interlocking behavioral contingencies that can, even over a period of years, contribute to process safety incidents. Leadership behaviors are also identified that can create the context in the form of metacontingencies that maintain these interlocking contingencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Safety is an important topic in the inherently dangerous mining industry. The creation of a behavior-based safety program and improved employee-management relationships reduced incident rates by 50%. The safety program focused on employee observations and oversight from steering committees. This case study suggests that participation rates of 30% could produce mine-wide safety improvement and considers possible explanations in the context of current literature and anecdotal reports. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Vance et al. evaluated the identification of a cutoff score when deciding which PDC-HS domains are indicated and a decision-making model to determine which domain should be a focus of intervention. Issue 4 of Volume 42 includes three manuscripts. First, Vance et al. described a study in which they evaluated some refinements to a performance analysis tool. [Extracted from the article]

We adapted the Performance Diagnostic Checklist to analyze the environmental events contributing to safe and at-risk behaviors by employees in organizations. We then used the resulting tool, the Performance Diagnostic Checklist–Safety (PDC-Safety), to identify variables contributing to unsafe equipment usage by 3 members of a landscaping crew at a private university. Based on PDC-Safety results, an intervention consisting of graphic feedback was implemented. The intervention increased safe performance for all participants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including process safety in petrochemical industry, work-related injuries and behavior analysis.

This study used an ABCB within-subjects design to examine the relative effects of feedback and prompts on safe sitting posture. Participants were three office workers. The dependent variables were the percentages of time the participants spent in four safe individual body positions and in the safe overall sitting posture. After baseline (A), feedback (B) was introduced, and prompts (C) were introduced in the next phase. In the final phase, feedback (B) was reintroduced. Results indicated that sitting postures improved substantially when feedback was provided. However, the prompts had only limited effects on the sitting posture. Thus, the use of a combined antecedent-based and consequence-based intervention is advised to improve sitting posture. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study evaluated the effectiveness of an automated observation and feedback system in improving safe sitting postures. Participants were four office workers. The dependent variables were the percentages of time participants spent in five safe body positions during experimental sessions. We used a multiple-baseline design counterbalanced across participants to test the system's effectiveness in delivering two types of feedback. For two participants, delayed/low-density feedback was introduced after baseline and immediate/high-density feedback was added in the next phase. For the other two participants, the sequence of implementing the feedback types was reversed. Results indicated that both delayed/low-density feedback and immediate/high-density feedback consistently improved participant postures and that immediate/high-density feedback was more effective than delayed/low-density feedback. The benefits of the automated system of postural data collection are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The current study compared the estimation of momentary time-sampling (MTS) to actual safety performance of three ergonomic responses: back, shoulder, and feet. Actual safety performance was established for the five participants by measuring the target responses with a continuous procedure. MTS 90, 105, 120, 135, 150, 165, 180, 195, 210, 240, and 300 s interval lengths were used to estimate safety performance. Two analyses were conducted. The first analysis found that MTS both under- and overestimates safety performance for all responses when compared with actual safety performance. The second analysis showed the MTS mean error of estimation when compared to actual safety performance across low, medium, and high levels of safety. The overall results suggest the use of MTS with longer intervals shows considerable accuracy (minimal error of estimation). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study employed structural and treatment analyses to determine factors that contributed to wrist posture safety in a small pharmacy. The pharmacy was located on a university campus and participants were three female pharmacy technicians. These particular employees had experienced various repetitive-motion injuries that resulted in a total of 36 lost days and 161 restricted days. Observers collected observational data on the participants' wrist posture in the presence and absence of an improvised wrist support device that participants placed under the computer keyboard. Average percentage safe for wrist position with a wrist support was higher for all three participants when compared to wrist position without a wrist support. These results indicated that the participants' wrist posture was considerably safer when the wrist support was present. The structural analysis proved valuable for aiding in the development of an intervention and in identifying variables that were responsible for the participants' wrist posture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A values-centered and team-based behavioral safety process was implemented in a petroleum oil refinery. Employee teams defined the refinery's safety values and related practices, which were used to guide the process design and implementation. The process included (a) a safety assessment; (b) the clarification of safety-related values and related practices; (c) process design and executive overview; (d) safety-observation training; (e) feedback, recognition, and celebration; and (f) process maintenance. Data that span 20 years are presented to show the long-term impact on recordable incidents, lost-time cases, and direct costs of injuries. The implementation was associated with an 81% decrease in recordable incidents, a 79% decrease in lost-time cases, and a 97% savings in annual workers' compensation costs over an eight-year period. An interview with the vice president of the refinery is presented to highlight the process's influence on the refinery's safety culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research examines the effects of a complex safety program that combined Behavior-Based Safety (BBS) and traditional safety methods. The study was conducted in an automobile parts plant in Mexico. Two sister plants served as comparison. Some of the components of the safety programs addressed behaviors of managers and included methods for tracking and ensuring that all components of the safety intervention were systematically carried out. Seven years of safety data indicate that the program was very effective in reducing injuries to workers with reductions of 92% for the index of first-time occupational visits, 99% reduction in los-t-time case rate, and 96% reduction in severity rate. Arguments are made that BBS programs should expand to include behaviors that are distal to the behaviors of line workers and thus improve its acceptance and effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooperatives are systems organized along key principles to balance the distribution of wealth across organizational members. The cooperative movement has an extensive history and has contributed to the design and operation of a large variety of endeavors that seek to maximize returns to a maximum number of stakeholders. While cooperatives are ubiquitous in commerce and community organizations, the designs of the contingencies that define a cooperative have rarely been subject to behavioral analyses. We report a large-scale examination of a safety incentive program enabled by cooperatives of small businesses that applied some of their financial resources to an incentive system organized to sustain active safety management within co-op members. The evaluation indicated that the frequency, severity, and cost of work-related injuries were reduced when safety incentives were applied. High return on investment indicates that the program was cost effective. User satisfaction with the procedures was also high, and the program became an enduring feature of the operation of the safety cooperatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of self-monitoring on safe positioning of individuals performing a typing task and an assembly task using a multiple baseline design across behaviors and tasks. The study took place in an analogue office setting with seven college student participants. The dependent variable was the percentage of observations scored as safe, and each session was recorded via a hidden camera. Each block of sessions included completing a typing task for two 9-minute sessions and an assembly task for two 9-minute sessions. During baseline, participants received information regarding safe positions and demonstrated the positions. In the self-monitoring phase, participants recorded whether a targeted posture was safe or at-risk. If constraints of the study permitted it, a third phase was implemented. In the third phase, if the targeted postures improved at least 20 percentage points over baseline during self-monitoring, additional behaviors were monitored. Otherwise, an overt camera condition was implemented during the third phase in addition to self-monitoring. Five of the 17 dependent variables exposed to the self-monitoring intervention resulted in substantial changes in safety performance, and an additional six behaviors resulted in a mean improvement of more than 10% from baseline to intervention. The camera present condition produced differential improvement for two of the 12 exposed postures. This information could lead to a viable alternative for improving occupational safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workplace applications of behavioral self-monitoring (BSM) methods have been studied periodically for over 35 years, yet the literature has never been systematically reviewed. Recent occupational safety interventions including BSM resulted in relatively large behavior changes. Moreover. BSM methods are functional for addressing a broad range of occupational health psychology topics. Studies (n = 24) where workers self-monitored productivity or safety behaviors were reviewed and scored along dimensions relevant to research and practice. For intervention conditions (n = 38), standardized effect sizes ranged from 0.2 to 14.5 (weighted average d = 2.8), The results encourage the use of BSM in workplace interventions, but the literature has insufficiently addressed the isolated and additive effects of BSM, worker involvement and individual differences, assessment applications, and theory testing and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reviews indicate management commitment is vital to maintain behavioral safety processes. Similarly, the impact of observation frequency on safety behaviors is thought to be important. An employee-driven process which encompassed behavioral observations, goal-setting, and feedback was implemented in a paper mill with 55 workgroups using a within-group, time-series design. Data collected over 70 weeks show safety improved by 45% points with a corresponding 45% reduction of injuries. Management's demonstrable support was significantly associated with behavioral safety performance. Observation dated in the literature. It is expected that both of these are essential to the maintenance of any behavioral safety intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participants received different amounts of information in either a cTRAIN computer-based instruction (CBI) program or in a booklet format, presented before or concurrently with interactive questions about the information. An interactive CBI presentation that required an overt response during training produced equivalent acquisition and retention to showing questions with the correct answers underlined in a book. "Open book tests" proved to be an effective teaching strategy, compared to requiring overt responses on tests in a CBI format. Retention did not prove durable over 1 week or 1 month in any format. These results confirm and extend research in college populations to adults in the workforce and raise serious concerns about the durability of workplace safety and health training beyond an immediate post-training test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the economic impact of a combined behavioral and ergonomic safety intervention in manufacturing organizations in the U.S. Use of utility analysis; Utility of the safety intervention programs; Rate of return.

Examines several behavioral safety programs that are implemented in manufacturing settings. Approaches to improving occupational safety; Focus on behavioral change; Effectiveness of intervention programs; Measures of injury and illness rates; Costs and benefits of behavior safety programs; Impact of safety programs on productivity.

Investigates the impact of multiple intervention on vehicle safety-belt use among industry workers in a manufacturing plant in Virginia. Types of interventions used for the experiment; Method that increased the number of safety-belt users among the workers; Proposed strategies for large-scale applications of the experiment.

Discusses the pizza deliverers' role as intervention agents for a community safety belt campaign sponsored by their stores. Evaluation on the behavior change of the intervention agents; Profiles of the intervention agents; Procedures in data collection and behavioral observations; Total number of vehicular observations administered.