Positive Perceptions Of Safety Research Articles

How was your Crossing Experience? Development of a Pedestrian Satisfaction with Unsignalized Crossings Scale

Unsignalized pedestrian crossing accommodations can improve pedestrian safety, yet their quality of service for pedestrians remains understudied. The present study explored whether and how pedestrians’ satisfaction with crossing unsignalized crossings varied according to the type of crossing accommodation used, that is, the rectangular rapid-flashing beacon (RRFB) with median island, median island alone, marked crosswalk, and unmarked crosswalk. The research team collected intercept survey and video observation data from 358 pedestrians across a total of 40 sites in two different cities. Structural equation models illustrated how pedestrians’ crossing-oriented satisfaction was shaped by their positive perceptions of safety and low levels of delay in the act of crossing the street. Crossing satisfaction also varied by unsignalized crossing accommodation type. Pedestrians perceived RRFBs with medians and median islands by themselves as comparably safer, more time efficient, and thus more satisfying than marked crosswalks without RRFBs or raised medians or at unmarked crosswalks. These findings could inform efforts to provide higher quality of service to pedestrians.

Impact of Interprofessional Communication on Safety in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

In light of the complex advances in neonatal intensive care units (NICU), it is essential that healthcare providers (HCPs) are equipped with the appropriate skills to effectively communicate between disciplines to provide safe, quality care. However, many HCPs acknowledge that they are not confident in their ability to communicate effectively with peers. This study aimed to identify perceived barriers and facilitators of communication among HCPs in a NICU setting. This study took place in a 60-bed NICU that utilized multiple disciplines of HCPs. Using a qualitative, cross-sectional design, 2 surveys were administered, namely, a demographic survey with open-ended questions and the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). Findings indicated inverse relationships in age/experience and perceptions of management. Total SAQ scores ranged from 45 to 77 (N = 28, M = 62.47, SD = 9.40). The SAQ highlight that total scores above 75 correspond with positive perceptions of safety in the NICU. The statistical evidence derived from this study contributes to the evaluation of HCP-perceived communication barriers and facilitators. The identification of perceived barriers and facilitators of communication in an ICU setting may serve as a distinct, evidence-based foundation to develop interventions that emphasize the value of communication.

Personal and work-related factors associated with mental health among auto workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States

Little is known about the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on non-healthcare workers, especially among those who weathered unemployment related to shutdowns and supply-chain disruptions. We administered a cross-sectional survey (May – October 2021) to understand patterns between personal and work-related predictors and mental health symptoms among in-person auto workers in the United States (N = 1,165). The Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 and the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 measured the presence of anxiety and depressive symptoms, respectively. Predictors included the presence of financial/family stressors, fear of SARS-CoV-2 exposure, perceptions of safety climate/culture, and clarity of workplace COVID-19 protocols. We used multinomial logistic regression to examine associations between the predictors and anxiety symptoms alone, depressive symptoms alone, and both anxiety and depressive symptoms compared to no symptoms, adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics, employee type, COVID-19 infection history, and preexisting psychological or psychiatric disorders. Experiencing financial/family stressors (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 2.65, 95 % CI: 1.86–3.78) and feeling very concerned over SARS-CoV-2 exposure (AOR: 2.12, 95 % CI: 1.47–3.06) increased the odds of having both anxiety and depressive symptoms in comparison to experiencing no stressors, and feeling less than very concerned over exposure, respectively. Positive perceptions of safety climate/culture (AOR = 0.79, 95 % CI: 0.75–0.84) and strong clarity of COVID-19 protocols (AOR = 0.91, 95 %CI: 0.84–0.99) were associated with lower odds of both anxiety and depressive symptoms. These findings highlight the importance of job security and feeling safe at work in affecting the psychological impact of the pandemic on workers. Considerations for COVID-19 prevention in the workplace and mental health should go hand-in-hand.

Patients\u2019 perception of safety climate in Irish general practice: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundAlthough patients have the potential to provide important information on patient safety, considerably fewer patient-report measures of safety climate (SC) have been applied in the primary care setting as compared to secondary care. Our aim was to examine the application of a patient-report measure of safety climate in an Irish population to understand patient perceptions of safety in general practice and identify potential areas for improvement. Specifically, our research questions were:1. What are patients’ perceptions of SC in Irish general practice?2. Do patient risk factors impact perceptions of SC?3. Do patient responses to an open-ended question about safety enhance our understanding of patient safety beyond that obtained from a quantitative measure of SC?MethodsThe Patient Perspective of Safety in General Practice (PPS-GP) survey was distributed to primary care patients in Ireland. The survey consisted of both Likert-response items, and free-text entry questions in relation to the safety of care. A series of five separate hierarchical regressions were used to examine the relationship between a range of patient-related variables and each of the survey subscales. A deductive content analysis approach was used to code the free-text responses.ResultsA total of 584 completed online and paper surveys were received. Respondents generally had positive perceptions of safety across all five SC subscales of the PPS-GP. Regarding patient risk factors, younger age and being of non-Irish nationality were consistently associated with more negative SC perceptions. Analysis of the free-text responses revealed considerably poorer patient perceptions (n = 85, 65.4%) of the safety experience in primary care.ConclusionOur findings indicate that despite being under-utilised, patients’ perceptions are a valuable source of information for measuring SC, with promising implications for safety improvement in general practice. Further consideration should be given to how best to utilise this data in order to improve safety in primary care.

Gender diversity and safety climate perceptions in schools and other youth-serving organisations

Although there is a lack of data on experiences in other youth-serving organisations, past research on schools has found that transgender youth often perceive the school climate, as well as the physical aspects of the school environment, as less safe than their cisgender peers. Similarly, transgender students’ level of confidence in adults and staff in many US studies paints a poor picture of the support transgender students receive, which in turn can affect truancy, academic and social outcomes, mental health and discrimination experiences. The purpose of the current research was to extend previous US studies by examining an Australian sample of gender diverse and cisgender young people, and to investigate if differences between these groups existed in perceptions of safety (including confidence in adults to act, barriers to seeking help, and the culture of safety) across a variety of youth-serving organisations. Using the Australian Safe Kids and Young People survey 27 gender diverse, and 54 cisgender (27 male- and 27 female-identifying) triads were matched on age, Aboriginal identity, and then postcode. Participants were 11–18 years old (M = 14.54, SD = 2.14), and were part of a convenience sample of over 1400 participants in a larger study investigating perceptions of safety in youth-serving organisations. Results indicated that gender diverse youth report poorer school safety climate than cisgender male and female youth (who did not differ from each other) and more barriers to help seeking when they felt unsafe. Gender diverse youth however had more confidence in adults to support them when feeling unsafe than their peers. Like previous international studies, the results suggest that youth-serving organisations struggle to provide environments that foster more positive perceptions of safety in gender diverse young people.

Do Adolescent Employees Perceive the Risks of Workplace Violence? A Mixed Methods Study.

Objective: Adolescents are at risk for workplace violence (WPV) exposure but may not perceive it as a risk. The purpose of this study was to explore adolescent employees’ perceptions of safety from WPV. Methods: Using a qualitative dominant mixed methods design, 30 adolescent employees were recruited to complete a 36-item survey and individual interviews. Analyses included descriptive statistical techniques for survey responses, conventional content analysis for qualitative interview data, and mixed data analyses to explore differences in qualitative themes based on WPV exposure and gender. Results: Participants expressed mostly positive perceptions of safety despite 50% (n = 15) reporting WPV exposure. WPV exposure and gender did not appear to be associated with overall perceptions of safety but may be associated with safety in numbers. Most males had positive perceptions of safety. Conclusions: Adolescent employees want and deserve WPV training. Recommendations for nurses and other health professionals to assist adolescents with addressing health and safety issues in the workplace are provided.

The Brief Norwegian Safety Climate Inventory (Brief NORSCI) – Psychometric properties and relationships with shift work, sleep, and health

The aim of this study was to establish the psychometric properties of the 11-item Brief Norwegian Safety Climate Inventory (Brief NORSCI) and to examine direct and indirect associations between shift work schedules, sleep problems, health complaints, and psychological safety climate. The study was based on a questionnaire survey in a randomly drawn cross-sectional sample of 8066 workers from the Norwegian offshore petroleum industry. The results showed that the Brief NORSCI has good psychometric properties. The three first order factors in the inventory could be combined in a composite second order safety climate factor with high construct and convergent validity. Workers on the different shift work schedules differed in levels of sleep problems and safety climate, but not with regard to health complaints. All non-day shift schedules reported significantly higher levels of sleep problems compared to day shift workers. Night shift workers had the most positive perceptions of safety. Shift work schedules had an indirect association with safety climate through sleep problems, but not through health complaints. These results provide tentative evidence for sleep problems as a potential explanatory factor in the shift work – psychological safety climate relationship. While this study has established the psychometric properties of the Brief NORSCI, as well as its relationships with shift work, health, and sleep, more research is needed in order to further determine the validity of the instrument.

ARE “GOOD SOLDIERS” SAFETY CONSCIOUS? AN EXAMINATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONAL CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIORS AND PERCEPTION OF WORKPLACE SAFETY

This study examined the relationship between safety climate and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). It involved a comparative analysis between workers active in citizenship behaviors and their colleagues who were passive or inactive regarding OCBs. Additional analyses also compared job satisfaction, compliance with safe work policies, and accident frequency between the two groups. T-tests were used in these comparative analyses. A positive association was found between safety perception and OCBs: workers who actively engaged in citizenship behaviors had positive perceptions of safety in their workplaces, and vice versa. Additionally, the group active in OCBs expressed more job satisfaction, were more compliant with safety management policies, and subsequently had a relatively lower accident involvement rate. The implications of these findings in the work environment are discussed.

Tourist's perceptions of safety and security while visiting Cape Town

Cape Town, a major tourist destination, has gained a reputation for being an unsafe place to go on holiday. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether tourists, who visited Cape Town in August and September 2001, felt safe while staying at and touring in the ‘Mother City’, and how they perceived safety and security in Cape Town. The findings, which were taken from a survey of 438 visitors to Cape Town, reveal that respondents had reasonably positive perceptions of safety and security, although they felt unsafe going out after dark and using the city's public transport. A number of personal factors, such as nationality and previous experience of crime, were also found to affect respondent's perceptions of safety and security. These findings are compared with several studies, which include empirical research conducted at other international tourist destinations, and the South African Tourism data on foreign visitor's perceptions of tourism facilities in the country. In light of the findings, it is recommended that the tourism industry and law enforcement agencies co-ordinate efforts to improve crime prevention measures in Cape Town.

Tourists' Fear of Crime While on Holiday in Cape Town

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether tourists who visited Cape Town in August and September 2001 felt safe while staying in and touring round the ‘Mother City’, and how they perceived safety and security in Cape Town. The findings, which were taken from a survey of 438 visitors to Cape Town, reveal that respondents had reasonably positive perceptions of safety and security, although they felt unsafe going out after dark and using the city's public transport. A number of personal factors, such as nationality and previous experience of crime, were also found to affect respondents' perceptions of crime. These findings are compared with several studies, which include empirical research conducted at other international tourist destinations, the Institute for Security Studies Cape Town Victim Survey, and the South African Tourism data on foreign visitors' perceptions of tourism facilities in the country. In the light of the findings, it is recommended that the tourism industry and law enforcement agencies coordinate efforts to improve crime prevention measures in Cape Town.