A safety climate measure for construction sites

Abstract

This study tests Brown and Holmes' (1986) three-factor safety climate model on construction workers. In this model, climate was viewed as molar perceptions people have of their work settings. Data were collected by a selfadministered questionnaire in a cross-sectional survey conducted among 384 workers employed in nine nonresidential construction sites in Baltimore, MD. The response rate was 71%. Results using two linear structural relations (LISREL) procedures (maximum likelihood used by Brown and Holmes and weighted least squares) indicated a good model fit. The weighted least squares procedure, which is more appropriate for our data, revealed that a two-factor model provided an overall better fit. The two factors were (a) management's commitment to safety and (b) workers' involvement in safety. This model emphasizes management and workers' involvement in safety matters. Results also suggest the necessity of addressing concerns of these two groups in safety policies.