| Author: | Liu, Yumeng |
| Title: | An empirical study of construction safety climate and safety performance in Mainland China : the case of Shanghai |
| Degree: | M.Sc. |
| Year: | 2013 |
| Subject: | Construction industry -- China -- Shanghai. Construction industry -- China -- Shanghai -- Safety measures Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Faculty of Construction and Environment |
| Pages: | viii, 108 leaves : col. ill. ; 30 cm. |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | The construction industry of Mainland China has been besetting with a high accident rate and a fatality rate because of the inherent hazardous working environment. Safety climate is a description about workers' awareness and attitudes towards safety in the workplace. Safety performance, on the other hand, is regarded as an evaluation on project participants' safe work behaviours. The relationship between these two concepts has been studied by many researchers before. This dissertation aims to explore the relationship between safety climate and safety performance of new construction projects in Mainland China, with particular reference to the city of Shanghai. In order to gain an overall view of the construction industry in Shanghai, Mainland China, a safety climate related questionnaire survey was conducted. First, exploratory factor analysis was adopted to identify the characteristics of safety climate. Based on a total of 128 survey responses, 25 out of 38 safety climate variables were grouped into 8 underlying factors after factor analysis with the help of SPSS 18.0 software program. Then these 8 underlying grouped factors were further studied by multiple linear regression to explore the relationship between safety climate and safety performance. Safety performance was measured by safety injuries, safety participation, and safety compliance. Finally, the "general safety participation" and "general safety compliance" were regarded as the finally accepted equations to describe the relationships. The results of multiple linear regression analysis indicated that "Worker's compliance with safety rules and accident investigation" (Factor 3), "Communication of safety related information" (Factor 5), and "Workmates' influence and support" (Factor 1) are the key contributors to "general safety participation". On the other hand, "Workmates' influence and support" (Factor 1), "Organizational commitment to health and safety procedures" (Factor 2), "Workers' commitment to health and safety procedures" (Factor 6), and "Time pressure and supervisor's competence in ensuring safety" (Factor 8) were regarded as the major influential factors to "general safety compliance". For further studies of different levels of safety management personnel conducted on safety climate and safety performance, another regression analysis was undertaken. As for safety participation and safety compliance, work team leader (WTL) group and project management personnel (PMP) group indeed weighted differently in factors. Totally, four separate equations were presented to show the differences between them. With respect to "general safety participation", "Worker's compliance with safety rules and accident investigation" (Factor 3) was the common factor shared by both groups, but the WTL group paid more attention to "Workmates' influence and support" (Factor 1) while the PMP group focused more on "Communication of safety related information" (Factor 5). As far as "general safety compliance" is concerned, the WTL group emphasized safety communications and workers' commitment, while the PMP group concerned more about safety communications, time pressure and supervisor' competence in ensuring safety, and organizational commitment. Based on these regression model equations, it is recommended to provide some effective strategies for project managers to achieve better site safety performance in Shanghai, yet there should be some modifications before applying to specific projects in other cities or regions. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | restricted access |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b26468189.pdf | For All Users (off-campus access for PolyU Staff & Students only) | 2.12 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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