Study and Action Plan on the Key Factors Influencing Unsafe Behaviors by Construction Workers

Abstract

As front-line workers on construction projects, construction workers have always had the highest accident rate among workers in various industries, a statistic that significantly impacts society. In this study, the 2–4 Model was used to identify 14 influencing factors affecting workers’ unsafe behaviors, and a safety management index for construction workers was established. The fuzzy decision-making laboratory analysis method (Fuzzy-DEMATEL) and the interpretative structural model (ISM) were used to analyze the hierarchical structure, internal relations, and key influencing factors behind the unsafe behaviors in question, and the 14 factors affecting them were divided into five dimensions, including the technological environment, insufficient safety knowledge, and the corporate safety culture. The three most direct influencing factors (comprising eight key nodes in the constructed hierarchy) were found to be poor safety awareness, the violation of operating procedures, and skill errors. Therefore, the main paths toward reducing the level of unsafe behavior among construction workers include making changes in process equipment, addressing skill-related errors, ensuring adherence to operating procedures, improving safety awareness, and enhancing safety knowledge. In this study, we identify and classify the factors influencing unsafe behaviors by construction workers and propose scientific interventions with which to prevent the continued occurrence of safety hazards among them.