Influence of Sociodemographic Factors on Construction Fieldworkers’ Safety Risk Assessments

Abdullahi Ibrahim,Chukwuma Nnaji,Mahmoud Shakouri

doi:10.3390/su14010111

Abdullahi Ibrahim, Chukwuma Nnaji + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su14010111

Copy DOI

Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Dec 23, 2021
Citations: 8	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Alabama, Colorado State University

Abstract

Construction operations are hazardous, leading to thousands of accidents, injuries, and fatalities annually. Safety risk assessment (SRA) is a key component necessary to respond to hazards effectively. Individuals have different perceptions of the riskiness of construction hazards, and studies have shown that different sociodemographic factors among employees can alter their SRA skills. However, their role in the US construction industry has been understudied, and this analysis investigates this topic further. Following a detailed systematic review of the relevant literature, quantitative data were collected from 181 construction fieldworkers in the United States using images integrated into an interactive questionnaire survey. Responses on the severity and frequency of seven potential accident causes were captured and analyzed. Findings from the literature review revealed six key sociodemographic factors—age, education, training, gender, ethnicity, and work type—that could impact fieldworkers’ SRA. However, a quantitative analysis suggests that only education is a significant influence, and sociodemographic factors had a statistically significant impact on less than five percent of the assessments. Therefore, the present study proposes that future investigation within the SRA domain should complement sociodemographic factors with critical behavioral factors that are rarely discussed, such as cognitive biases, personality traits, and safety behavior. As a foundational study for safety researchers and practitioners, the results provide information on SRA that can help enhance the safety and workforce sustainability of construction companies with a diverse workforce.

Highlights

Published: 23 December 2021The US construction industry employed over 3.2% of the US population in 2021, and employees had different sociological and demographic characteristics such as age, ethnicity, and gender [1]
The outcome of the analysis showed that job role has no significant impact on the mean Safety risk assessment (SRA) scores reported by the workers for all the respective accident causes, with pvalues ranging from 0.124 to 0.986
This study found that the ethnicity of workers had no significant impact on their SRA, there was a slight difference in the mean SRA scores reported by Caucasians and workers from minority ethnic groups (MEG)

Summary

Introduction

Published: 23 December 2021The US construction industry employed over 3.2% of the US population in 2021, and employees had different sociological and demographic characteristics such as age, ethnicity, and gender [1]. Workers’ ability to assess safety risks has been quantified in multiple studies, and the results suggest that workers perceive safety risks differently when exposed to identical circumstances [10,11,12]. The construction industry is known for unique projects that come with distinct challenges These challenges frequently result in unanticipated situations that expose construction employees to occupational hazards and cause unforeseen liabilities. These incidents are unavoidable, and the nature of the construction site activities contributes to occupational risks [27]. As a result, understanding construction workers’ safety risk assessments is critical to creating a safe and healthy workplace for them.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion