Safety at the work place: a behavioural approach

Abstract

The most common and popular approaches to safety have been technologically and engineering oriented. Recent resarch, however, indicates that it is possible to develop an effective approach to occupational safety based on the behavioural and social sciences. The paper demonstrates the practical applicability of such a behavioural approahc to safety by reviewing some empirical studies which have used this approach to reduce accidents and enhance safety in existing organizations. An appropriate combination of the behavioural approach with the engineering and technologically based approaches is suggested as the most effective strategy for improvement of safety at the work place.