Safety Risk Perception Research Articles

Health and safety risk perceptions and needs of app-based drivers during COVID-19.

BackgroundApp‐based drivers face work disruptions and infection risk during a pandemic due to the nature of their work, interactions with the public, and lack of workplace protections. Limited occupational health research has focused on their experiences.MethodsWe surveyed 100 app‐based drivers in Seattle, WA to assess risk perceptions, supports, and controls received from the company that employs them, sources of trust, stress, job satisfaction, COVID‐19 infection status, and how the pandemic had changed their work hours. Data were summarized descriptively and with simple regression models. We complemented this with qualitative interviews to better understand controls and policies enacted during COVID‐19, and barriers and facilitators to their implementation.ResultsDrivers expressed very high levels of concern for exposure and infection (86%–97% were “very concerned” for all scenarios). Only 31% of drivers reported receiving an appropriate mask from the company for which they drive. Stress (assessed via PSS‐4) was significantly higher in drivers who reported having had COVID‐19, and also significantly higher in respondents with lower reported job satisfaction. Informants frequently identified supports such as unemployment benefits and peer outreach among the driver community as ways to ensure that drivers could access available benefits during COVID‐19.ConclusionsApp‐based drivers received few protections from the company that employed them, and had high fear of exposure and infection at work. There is increased need for health‐supportive policies and protections for app‐based drivers. The most effective occupational and public health regulations would cover employees who may not have a traditional employer–employee relationship.

Safety values, attitudes and behaviours in workers of a waste collection and sanitation company

The values, attitudes and safety behaviours expressed by workers are an important aspect when determining the success of a company's performance in the field of safety and health at work. The data compiled from a non-probabilistic random sample of 200 workers from a waste collection and sanitation company in northeastern Brazil played a role in portraying some of the organisation's cultural traits in terms of occupational safety and health conditions and organisational safety climate in this segment of workers. It can be concluded that the company has an overall positive safety climate, in particular how safety was considered an organisational value, and also workers’ perception about the general safety principles in the company is very positive. The only parameter that was negatively assessed concerns the quality of safety communications, presenting an opportunity for improvement. The research hypotheses formulated were only partially confirmed, yet it was possible to assess that factors such as safety training, the quality of safety communications, the control of the effects of work pace on safety, the perception of safety management values and practices in the organisation and the institutional strength of the internal safety services had a favourable bearing on determining the level of safety maturity and risk perception of workers.

Predictors of safety behaviors among cement factory workers

Objectives. Risk perception can affect safety behaviors. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between safety behaviors and risk perception among cement factory workers. Methods. The study was conducted on all 236 workers of a cement factory in Bijar, Iran. Three valid questionnaires were used: a sociodemographic and job-related questionnaire, a risk perception questionnaire and a safety behavior questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the χ 2 test and multiple linear regression analysis. Results. The mean age of participants was 38.1 (±8.4) years. The level of risk perception was high among 60.6% of participants and moderate among 33.1% of them. Additionally, 67.8% of participants had diligent engagement in safety behaviors. The results of the study revealed that job type, experience with workplace events and engagement in safety behaviors had a significant positive relationship with risk perception. Conclusions. This study shows that risk perception, safety training and supervision have a significant positive relationship with the engagement in safety behaviors. The findings of this study can be used in designing workplace interventions to reduce occupational dangers. Motivational strategies are suggested to encourage workers to use personal protection equipment.

Age differences in COVID-19 risk-taking, and the relationship with risk attitude and numerical ability.

This study aimed to investigate age differences in risk-taking concerning the coronavirus pandemic, while disentangling the contribution of risk attitude, objective risk and numeracy. We tested (i) whether older and younger adults differed in taking coronavirus-related health risks, (ii) whether there are age differences in coronavirus risk, risk attitude and numerical ability and (iii) whether these age differences in coronavirus risk, attitude and numerical ability are related to coronavirus risk-taking. The study was observational, with measures presented to all participants in random order. A sample of 469 participants reported their coronavirus-related risk-taking behaviour, objective risk, risk attitude towards health and safety risks, numerical ability and risk perception. Our findings show that age was significantly related to coronavirus risk-taking, with younger adults taking more risk, and that this was partially mediated by higher numeracy, but not objective risk or risk attitude. Exploratory analyses suggest that risk perception for self and others partially mediated age differences in coronavirus risk-taking. The findings of this study may better our understanding of why age groups differ in their adoption of protective behaviours during a pandemic and contribute to the debate whether age differences in risk-taking occur due to decline in abilities or changes in risk attitude.

Improved Hybrid Reasoning Approach to Safety Risk Perception under Uncertainty for Mountain Tunnel Construction

AbstractTunnel projects in mountainous areas are considered a kind of high-risk work due to the complexity of geological conditions, as well as the diversity of construction and management factors....

Is the Workers’ Health and Safety Scenario Different in Post-Disaster Reconstruction from Conventional Construction? A Case Study in Bhaktapur, Nepal

The present study aims to understand the health and safety scenario for reconstruction workers and to differentiate between post disaster reconstruction (PDR) operations and conventional construction operations as it relates to the workers’ health and safety. The context of the study is Bhaktapur, Nepal, which was impacted by the 2015 Gorkha earthquake. The study is based on in-depth interviews with stakeholders (n = 38) and triangulated with a review of secondary sources, including laws and regulations and newspapers. The findings suggest that the health and safety scenario of PDR operations differ from conventional construction operations in five broad ways: (1) debris management, (2) workforce management, (3) work environment, (4) perceived urgency to complete reconstruction, and (5) safety risk perception. The findings of this study show how construction workers in PDR operations face unique challenges and higher exposure to construction hazards at work compared to conventional construction. The study presents practical recommendations for governments in the Global South related to debris removal, training for construction stakeholders, technical assistance, enforcement of labor laws, and awareness campaigns for affected populations.

Factors affecting customer intention to use online food delivery services before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

With the emerging popularity of online food delivery (OFD) services, this research examined predictors affecting customer intention to use OFD services amid the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Specifically, Study 1 examined the moderating effect of the pandemic on the relationship between six predictors (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, price saving benefit, time saving benefit, food safety risk perception, and trust) and OFD usage intention, and Study 2 extended the model by adding customer perceptions of COVID-19 (perceived severity and vulnerability) during the pandemic. Study 1 showed that all of the predictors except food safety risk perception significantly affected OFD usage intention, but no moderation effect of COVID-19 was found. In Study 2, while perceived severity and vulnerability had no significant impact on OFD usage intention, the altered effects of socio-demographic variables during the COVID-19 pandemic were found. Theoretical and managerial implications are provided.

Integrating perceptions of safety and bicycle theft risk in the analysis of cycling infrastructure preferences

• Perceptions of cycling safety and bicycle theft risk affect cycling infrastructure preferences. • Perceptions of theft risk affect the importance that bicyclists place on travel time. • People prefer bike lanes at the sidewalk level. • Bicyclists could be more willing to use bike lanes at the road level if separators are provided. • Safe parking and lockers encourage people to use cycling infrastructure. Cycling infrastructure development is an effective but expensive urban policy to encourage people to use bicycles. Although people usually prefer infrastructure with high cycling priority, authorities in some cities have focused policies on adapting part of current motor vehicle infrastructure to increase the length and coverage of bicycle infrastructure at the road level, which can help to lower infrastructure investment costs. Perceptions are also important in developing programs to promote cycling and they may even be more important for cyclists than the reality itself. In this research, we integrated the perceptions of cycling safety and theft risk into a hybrid discrete choice model in order to better understand cycling infrastructure preferences, using Bogota, a bike-friendly city with security concerns, as a case study. We found that concerns about safety are a significant deterrent to using bike lanes at the road level in the city while perceptions of theft risk affect the value or importance that bicyclists place on travel time. Based on modeling findings we proposed hard and soft measures to encourage bicyclists to use bike lanes at the road level.

Perception of the Home Environment. The 2019 Study

RIVM conducted a questionnaire study into residents' perception of the living environment. This includes monitoring data on residents perception of sounds, vibrations, odours, and safety risks in the neighbourhood. In 2019, 2259 residents of the Netherlands aged 16 years and older participated in this survey. The 2019 data show that the degree of satisfaction with the home environment was fairly high and the same as it was during the previous survey in 2016. Road traffic is an important source of severe annoyance (10.4%) and severe sleep disturbance (5,9%). Mopeds and motorbikes in particular cause severe noise annoyance (10.6%). Compared to 2016, more people experience severe annoyance from the sound of vans. Road traffic also causes nuisance due to the vibrations that it causes (3.9%). Neighbours are a source of noise annoyance (9.0%) and the most important source of severe odour annoyance. The latter primarily involves odours from fireplaces (5.3%), fire pits, and barbecues (5.0%). Activities by neighbours also cause severe annoyance due to vibrations. It also turns out that people living in the vicinity of a 'higher-risk activity', such as heavy industry, are more frequently (severely) concerned about their own safety. Results of the 2020 Study will presented as well.

Water safety attitudes, risk perception, experiences, and education for households impacted by the 2018 Camp Fire, California

The 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County, California, was the state’s most destructive wildfire in history, destroying more than 14,600 homes. The wildfire caused widespread drinking water system chemical contamination resulting in acute and chronic health risks, requiring water use restrictions. Six months after the fire, the research team conducted a rapid community survey of attitudes and experiences that were specific to building water safety. The validated surveys represented 233 households. Amid the disaster response, 54% of the respondents self-reported that at least one member in their household had anxiety, stress, or depression directly related to the water contamination issues. Uncertainty about water and plumbing safety prompted respondents to alter water use in the home (83%), install in-home water treatment technologies (47%), and/or seek alternate water sources (85%). To provide affected households with answers to plumbing testing and safety questions, the research team designed and conducted a community education event. Many community members had technical questions about how to conduct water testing to determine whether their plumbing was safe. The research team identified several significant public health information gaps and a need for clear recommendations. This work illustrates the advantages of community involvement for resolving ambiguities in how households can respond to water safety issues following a natural disaster. Further, the authors posit that strong community engagement in this context can reduce both psychological distress and exposure risks.

Understanding the Relationship Between Tourists' Consumption Behavior and Their Consumption Substitution Willingness Under Unusual Environment.

IntroductionUnderstanding the relationship between tourists’ consumption behavior and their willingness to substitute consumption in unusual environments can promote tourists’ sustainable consumption behavior. This study explores the internal relationship between tourists’ willingness to engage in sustainable consumption behavior and the substitution of tourism consumption willingness in an unusual environment and the related factors.MethodsThrough qualitative and quantitative mixed research, this study first invited 32 interviewees related to the tourism industry to conduct in-depth and focus group interviews and extracted a research model based on the push-pull theoretical model (PPM) through three rounds of coding of grounded theory. Then, through questionnaire design, pre-release, and formal release, 268 valid questionnaires were collected using a convenience sampling method, and the hypothesis and its mediating effect were verified using a structural equation model.ResultsFurther quantitative analysis and verification showed that being in an unusual environment had a positive effect on tourists’ perception of crisis awareness, safety risk, and willingness to engage in sustainable consumption behavior. However, the results did not support the unusual environment positively affecting the substitution of tourism consumption willingness, the psychological transformation cost, and the fixed consumption habit negatively affecting the substitution of tourism consumption willingness. In this study, two mediating variables were used to verify the indirect effect of being in an unusual environment and the substitution of tourism consumption willingness. The results showed that the mediating effect was significant.ConclusionThis study explored an action mechanism model aimed at guiding tourists’ willingness for sustainable consumption, based on the environment and consumption behavior, and provided relevant countermeasures for the government and business decision-makers, enterprises, and investors in the tourism sector.

Zero-Risk Interpretation in the Level of Preventive Action Method Implementation for Health and Safety in Construction Sites.

Risk assessment is a legal obligation for all companies in most countries worldwide. It aims to control the quality of working conditions and avoid externalizing the consequences of accidents and resulting costs to society. This work discusses the need for an adequate interpretation of the zero-risk concept from a technical-preventive perspective to assess occupational risks in construction sites. A critical analysis of several risk assessment methodologies was carried out, focusing on the evaluation criteria of little or no-risk situations. The verification of the results was made through a case study. The perception of health and safety risks by workers is very different from that of the evaluators. Often, when workers identify a situation as low-risk or even zero-risk, the evaluator assesses the same context as maximum risk. Given the workers’ and the evaluators’ responses, the Preventive Action Method establishes a new parameter, the Environment Congruence. This parameter is based on the perception of the preventive environment and gives more importance to the evaluators’ decision. When preventive action is optimal, the risk is low in all preventive observation settings. In conclusion, this study justifies the non-nullity of the risk and the difficulty of assessing zero-risk in construction sites. Therefore, evaluations with qualitative and quantitative non-risk approaches should be discarded.

The Influence of Personality, Safety Attitudes, and Risk Perception of Pilots: A Modeling and Mediation Perspective

Objective: The purpose of the current study was to assess the influence of personality traits on safety attitudes and risk perceptions. Background: The ability to accurately assess risk remains a focal point of aviation training. This research seeks to understand if safety attitudes serve as a mediator. Method: Using a sample of 2,857 pilots, a statistical model was created through two independent stages. In stage 1, approximately 50% of the data were used to create the model using structural equation modeling techniques, and in stage 2, the model was independently validated. Results: The findings indicated that personality factors positively influenced risk perception, whereas personality increased, so did the pilot's perception of the risk level. Self-confidence was negatively related to risk perceptions, indicating that a pilot's self-confidence increases their perception of risk decreases. Additionally, self-confidence was a significant mediator to the relationship between personality factors and risk perception. Conclusion: The original scales had some validity issues, but the re-specified model provided some meaningful findings, especially in the relationships between personality traits, self-confidence, and risk perception. The model explained 26.4% of the variance in self-confidence and 9.5% of risk perception variance. Application: The findings highlight the importance for pilots to be aware of how increased self-confidence may influence their perceptions of risk. As pilots gain experience and self-confidence, care needs to be given to ensure greater risks are not taken, offsetting the value of the experience and self-confidence.

Explaining Consumers' Intention for Traceable Pork regarding Animal Disease: The Role of Food Safety Concern, Risk Perception, Trust, and Habit.

Purpose. The aim of this paper is to explain a consumers' intention for traceable food in the context of the African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak, in order to provide scientific knowledge for the government's intervention to mitigate the perceived risk and to promote the development of traceable food. Methodology. This research employed an extended theory of planned behavior (TPB) model in predicting purchase intention/attitude toward traceable pork. The structural equation analysis (SEM) was used on a sample of 230 students in Vietnam. Findings. The current context of food safety issues, as well as animal disease outbreak, is beneficial to direct consumption toward traceable products. Heterogeneous impacts of trust were confirmed on how consumers perceived risks associated with the ASF outbreak. Consumers' habits of shopping places and looking for the product origin incite the positive attitude toward traceable pork. Food safety concerns also promoted a positive purchase attitude. Originality/Value. The study's objective is first to equip knowledge regarding the consumers' intention toward traceable food under the impact of animal disease, particularly in the context of food safety issues in Vietnam. Extended knowledge promotes tailored policies to regain consumers' confidence and facilitate the development of traceable food.

Factors Influencing Consumers’ Perceptions of Safety Risk of Fresh Domestic Tomato in Albania-a Multinomial Econometric Approach

This study deals with the consumers' perceived risk and its determinants for fresh tomatoes in Albania. Survey data are analyzed using ordered logistic regression.Consumers associate a high level of benefits with the consumption of fresh tomatoes but have severe doubts about food safety and rate the average level of food safety risk as high as 6.66 on a scale from 0 to 10.Consumers' knowledge of food safety, their perceptions about the reliability of food safety information, the government's ability to ensure safety, negative experiences with tomato consumption, consumer age, and family size are key determinants of perceived food risk, while gender, education, and income did not prove to be significant. The results provide the basis for appropriate actions by government and food system actors in improving food safety and consumers‘ trust in food safety assurance.

The influence of media consumption on public risk perception: a meta-analysis

Media is an important explanatory variable in the research on the social amplification of risk; the public often perceives risks in social life through media consumption such as by relying on, using, and trusting the media dialectically. Currently, researchers have not reached a consistent conclusion about the relationship between media consumption and public risk perception (PRP). This study uses meta-analysis to integrate empirical literature and conducts a more in-depth and systematic analysis of the relationship between media consumption and PRP. The results show that (1) there is no significant correlation between general media use (GMU) and PRP, there is positive relationship between selective media exposure (SMEX) and PRP, and there is no significant correlation between media source credibility (MSC) and PRP. (2) Further meta-regression and subgroup analyses show that country type significantly moderates the relationship between GMU and PRP. Compared with high uncertainty avoidance countries, the relationship between GMU and PRP in low uncertainty avoidance countries is stronger. Moreover, risk type significantly moderates the relationship between SMEX and PRP. Compared with terrorist crime, environmental, accident and other types of risks, the SMEX is more positively correlated with public’s food safety and health risk perception. In addition, media type moderates the relationship between MSC and PRP. Compared with traditional media and internet social media, the MSC of mixed media have a stronger positive relationship with PRP.

Risk Factors for Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders Among Intensive Care Unit Nurses in China: A Structural Equation Model Approach

This study explored the direct and indirect effects of risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMDs) in nurses working in intensive care units (ICUs). A cross-sectional study design was used. ICU nurses from 28 tertiary hospitals in the Hunan and Guangdong provinces participated in a survey conducted via a self-reported online questionnaire. A structural equation model was used to fit the data and to evaluate associations among WRMDs and risk factors. Valid questionnaire samples were submitted by 984 ICU nurses. The prevalence of WRMDs within the previous year among ICU nurses was 96.8%. A valid structural equation model was constructed, and a good fit was shown: Chi-squarevalue/degrees of freedom= 2.248; comparative fit index= .931; normal fit index= .905; goodness-of-fit index= .978; adjusted goodness-of-fit index= .966; and root mean square error of approximation= .036. All regression coefficients for direct effect reached significant levels (critical ratio>1.96 and p<.05). In the structural equation model, the occurrence of WRMDs was directly affected by the following: physical factors, risk perception, and job stress. Physical factors and a safe environment indirectly affected WRMDs through risk perception and job stress. The strongest correlations with WRMDs were physical factors. The model provided a new perspective for understanding the associations among physical factors, workplace safety environment, risk perception, job stress, and WRMDs. To improve the practice setting of the ICU, efforts should be made to help prevent WRMDs from physical, psychosocial, and environmental factors.

Correlates of Parental Support of Child and Youth Physical Activity: a Systematic Review

Regular physical activity (PA) is important to the health of children and tracks to positive health profiles in adulthood. Parental support of child and youth PA is a key determinant of subsequent behavior, yet the correlates of parental support behaviors are poorly understood. The purpose of this paper was to review and appraise current evidence on the correlates of parental support of child and youth PA as well as describe the measures used to assess parental support. Literature searches were conducted in September 2019 using ten common databases. Studies included published articles in peer-reviewed journals written in the English language that assessed correlates of parental support for child and youth PA using an observational design. The initial search yielded 2917 publications, reduced to 22 studies with 19 unique data sets of low-medium quality that met inclusion criteria. Twenty potential correlates had sufficient information for appraisal. Of these, there was evidence that child age (negative association with support), parental social cognitions about support (positive relationship), and neighborhood safety (positive relationship) were reliable correlates. Parental support measurement was extremely varied, yet encouragement, logistical support, and co-participation activity were common elements across most of the measures. Parental support interventions should target both children and youth and may benefit from continued focus on cognitive-behavioral approaches and parental perceptions of safety risk. Additional research on the inter-personal, environmental, and programmatic correlates of parental support is advised, given the paucity of contemporary research.

Gerações Y e Z e suas percepções de riscos de segurança e saúde no trabalho

O conceito de geração engloba o conjunto de indivíduos nascidos em épocas distintas, influenciados por um contexto histórico, que determina o comportamento, causando impacto direto na evolução da sociedade e, principalmente, no ambiente de trabalho. Este estudo teve como objetivo analisar os comportamentos das Gerações Y e Z, apontando as causas e as diferenças na forma de pensar e proceder quanto à percepção dos fatores de riscos de segurança e saúde no trabalho. Buscou-se compreender os principais sentidos referenciados ao trabalho pelos indivíduos dessas duas gerações, quais seus modos de pensar e agir no dia a dia na sociedade, a visão que as demais gerações concebem sobre eles e, ainda, algumas semelhanças e diferenças entre as gerações pesquisadas. Para tal, realizou-se uma pesquisa de caráter qualitativo, na qual foram coletados dados por meio de questionário respondido por indivíduos pertencentes às Gerações Y e Z atuantes no mercado. Após análises, pôde-se constatar que as características apontadas para as Gerações Y e Z ocorrem em consonância com o prescrito nas literaturas pesquisadas. Ações foram propostas para melhorar a percepção dos riscos de segurança e saúde no trabalho para as gerações em estudo.

Risk Perception and Occupational Accidents among a Group of Egyptian Construction Workers in a Construction Company in Cairo

Abstract Background Construction sector is one of the main pillars of the global economy, even though it is a risky business in which fatal and non-fatal occupational injuries occur frequently. Information about workers’ awareness about health and safety hazards, risk perception and safe work practices can help to understand where to apply prevention strategies. Unfortunately, construction sites are workplaces with limited access for research; studies at work level represent 2.28% of all available research. Objectives To estimate the perception of construction workers to the occupational hazards, to identify types of common occupational accidents involving construction workers in an Egyptian company and to identify the workers’ personal and work related characteristics determinants on their risk perception. Material and Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among construction workers in one of the projects in Cairo. During the period from January to August 2018; a sample of 104 workers were interviewed using a structured questionnaire inquiring about socio-demographic characteristics, work related variables together with assessment of workers’ risk perception. Results the majority of the workers had low risk perception for falls, contact with chemicals, struck by objects, sharp objects, manual lifting, repetitive movements and heat stress, while the noise was reported as “ no or acceptable risk category”. The study identified age, health and safety training, working hours and the use of PPEs as significantly related factors to risk perception. Conclusion risk perception among studied workers in average is low. Older age, prolonged working hours, lack of training and not wearing PPEs are significant risk factors shaping workers’ perception. Recommendation safety training and change of work environment may improve workers’ perception toward occupational accidents and subsequently reduce the risk of injuries.