Computer Cases & Towers

A Review of the History, Effectiveness and Future of the Behavior-Based Safety Program

 Author: Samuel A. Oyewole, Ph.D.

Abstract

            This paper provides an overview of the history of behavior-based safety, from early operant conditioning to more recent ideas which developed safety into an integral part of today's company culture. Ultimately, management is responsible for maintaining safety as part of the company's philosophy, which becomes the basis for behavioral analysis throughout the company. Safety and health training should be continual and must be functional across all levels. Measurement should be taken of the quality of the system rather than the errors. Safety measurements should focus on the practices, behaviors and conditions, rather than simply counting accidents. Employee involvement and buy-in are crucial, and can be achieved using empowered, broad-based safety committees. The person, environment, and behavior are the primary factors in safety, the comparison of these factors to a three-legged stool shows behavior as vitally important, yet not standing alone. Behavior is only part of the picture, with engineering, mechanical and procedural aspects of the environment proving equally important. Behavior-based safety can provide the flexibility to adapt to changing conditions of culture, technology and economy. Along with the engineering controls of the environment and the skills and knowledge of the person, behavior training supports the requirements for an efficient, well-trained, healthy and safe workforce.

 

Keywords: Behavioral-Based Safety; Safety Triad; Actively Caring; Total Safety Culture; Behavior

 

1.0.Introduction

            The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the history behind the progressive development of behavior-based safety (BBS), its effectiveness and future potential. According to Geller (1994), the factors that affect safety are the person, the environment, and behavior. These form a triangle, and like a three-legged stool, which are all inter-related to affect the outcome.  Behavior affects how employees react to the environment and provides opportunities for them to improve the environment. By training behaviors, employees can be better prepared to control their environment and recognize the various hazards associated with their jobs. The 1970s emphasized an inexpensive, simple, top-down approach based on B.F. Skinner's operant conditioning where supervisors observed and provided feedback, doling out reward or punishment as necessary (Skinner, 1950). Without the reinforcement, behavior reverted back to the way it was before. The early 1980s saw a move toward interventions led by the employees themselves, with peer-to-peer coaching and feedback. However, without including management, this method seemed to place all the responsibility on the employees. The focus on company culture with the inclusion of both management and employees emerged in the 1990s. In this system, everyone receives feedback. All these systems are still in use. (Cooper, 2009),

            In his 1989 article (reprinted in 2006), Salazar takes the philosophy of W. Edwards Deming (of Total Quality Management fame) and applies it to safety. In the 1950s, W. Edwards Deming brought statistical process control and continuous quality improvement to Japan. Deming's philosophy and his 14 Obligations of Management have also become part of the U.S. business world. These basic concepts, Salazar says, will need to become part of management's quality and safety philosophies. Management is ultimately responsible for how decisions are made and therefore must maintain a constancy of purpose, that safety is an integral part of their management philosophy. The idea that all accidents are preventable must become ingrained in the company culture (Salazar, 2006). Management's philosophies are the basis of behaviors throughout the company. If all injuries are preventable, what must we do to prevent them? In a word, training- training in how to do tasks safely and recognize hazards before they become accidents.

The safety professional's role as trainer should be emphasized and resources should be allocated.  New employees, management and supervisors, and all employees on a regular basis should receive continual training and reeducation in safety (Salazar, 2006). Salazar (2006) points out that measuring success by normally fluctuating injury rates that fall within the control limits is not only ineffective but might cause the abandonment of safety controls that are actually working. Instead of counting the results, Salazar suggests using Deming's solution of measuring the quality of the system. For this, unsafe practices, behaviors, and conditions were looked into.  For each serious injury, it is estimated that there have been 600 unsafe practices, behaviors and conditions. An injury is not a discrete event, nor should it be compared as if it were a product. An injury is better thought of as a defect. The other half of measuring quality involves the actions taken to positively affect the safety system. These positive aspects include training, development, designing, audits, and employee involvement in the safety system.

 

2.0.Literature Review

            In addition to these philosophical, training, and measurement changes, organizational changes and implementation are the next steps in continuous process improvement. Integrating management responsibility and employee involvement can be achieved using safety committees. The corporate management team should already exist in the form of top management and their staff. It will be their role to adopt and enforce the new safety philosophy specific to their company. These top managers will then pass the philosophy on to their plant or facility as the leaders of the existing plant/facility management teams. The addition of key plant personnel can bring additional perspective to the discussions. The working subcommittees can be based on departmental divisions or the problem at hand, which may span several departments. Backed by managerial commitment and with the involvement of the front-line supervisors and workers who deal with the problems, most safety issues can be resolved. The workers involved have input and understand the necessity and purpose. There is "buy-in" by all levels. Supporting all levels of this organizational structure are the safety consultants. Their mission is to provide safety knowledge and experience to management and the safety committees who are ultimately responsible for its success (Salazar, 2006).

            Geller (1994) presents principles similar to Salazar's (2006) interpretation of Deming's philosophy. The successful safety process is the result of the company culture rather than the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations. Behavior-based and person-based factors are often seen as the determinants for success. In this case, the focus must be based on the process rather than the outcomes. In the behavioral science Activator-Behavior-Consequences (ABC) model, Activators stimulate Behavior and Consequences reinforce behavior, either positively or negatively. The power of the positive reinforced behavior (R+) is shown by the idea that the company should focus on success rather than merely avoiding failure. Active observation and supportive feedback are necessary for changing behavior. In order to achieve this objective, actively caring coaching (ACC) must be incorporated and considered one of the goals. Communication-Observation-Analysis-Change-Help (COACH) technique must be adopted when implementing Coaching. Coaching activities using behavior-based psychology can provide the expected feedback on effectiveness of the BBS program. Self-esteem, belonging and empowerment further bolster the employees' ability to actively care. Employees need to feel valuable, part of a team, and must be able to make a difference before they extend themselves to active participation in the safety process. Rather than considering safety as a priority, desired results are achievable when safety is seen as a value to be internalized and incorporated to every task the employee performs. (Geller, 1994)

            In Geller's description of a Total Safety Culture, everyone must participate in the safety and health program and are responsible for the safety of the work place. According to Geller (1989) and Geller et al. (1989), the ultimate goal of any safety program is the achievement of 100% Total Safety Culture. From the context of behavioral-based safety, a Total Safety Culture is achieved when:

1. Everyone in the workplace feels responsible for safety and participates in the daily safety improvement efforts.
2. Everyone goes "above and beyond the call of duty" in identifying, intervening on, and correcting any unsafe and at-risk behaviors in within the organization.
3. Both peers and managers recognize and provide rewards for safe work practices (when improved safety practice or behavior is seen as an accomplishment).
4. Everyone "actively care" continuously for the safety of themselves as well as the safety of other people.
5. Situational needs and events does not dictate the pace of the safety program (when safety is not dependent on the current situational demands), and safety is considered a major priority in every situation.

According to Geller, interactions of safety-related factors are represented by a triangle known as the Safety Triad. The Safety Triad comprises of three individual entities (the person, the environment and the behavior). Each person comes with a set of skills and abilities, knowledge and intelligence, as well as personality and motives. The environment is made up of more than just the task at hand. In addition to the equipment and tools in use, the nearby machinery and personnel, the atmosphere and temperature of the area, the engineering of the line, and the housekeeping of the area can all affect the outcome. "Actively caring" behavior is the desired third side of the triangle. Recognizing a hazard, communicating that it exists and seeing it through to change the environment is one aspect of behavior. Compliance with management's policies and procedures and coaching/training others to actively observe and comply with safety policies is another aspect of behavior. Demonstrating the proper safe technique and serving as a good example is another (Geller, 1994). 

It should be noted that the factors (Person, Environment, and Behavior) that make up the Safety Triad are dynamic and inter-related. This means modifications or changes in any of the factors will eventually affect the others. For example, if the objective of the management is to reduce incident rates through improved safety behaviors, then increasing safe behaviors are not only emphasized, it may also be necessary to modify the environment to enhance attitudes which are consistent with the required safe behaviors.

 

3.0.Implementation of Behavioral-Based Safety Program

Recently, behavioral-based safety researchers such as Jennison-Goonan (2007) have attempted to implement the total safety culture requirements recommended by Geller (1989).  Jennison-Goonan (2007) discusses the change in culture that won the North Mississippi Medical Center the 2006 Baldrige Award, based on a continuous quality improvement philosophy.  Safety of the patients and the staff were included in the challenges addressed by this hospital. As a result of their proactive, positive culture change, staff satisfaction has exceeded the 90th percentile since 2000. As the author puts it, quality, and with it safety, is a "Never ending journey" and the hospital will continue to follow the Baldrige criteria in a perpetual reevaluation of its organization and its successes. Behavior-based safety is a tool to improve safety in an organization, and as such, is not regulated directly by the government. 

Use of this tool resulting in implications that accidents are "always" the result of behavior may have long-reaching effects on litigation. OSHA does not regulate incentive programs, but looks harshly on programs that encourage underreporting (Sheehy, 2004). In theory, behavior–based safety, like any effective safety program, can reduce the cost of accidents, down-time, and insurance. However, behavior-based safety traditionally involves many hours and many employees in an attempt to maximize participation. Getting everyone up to speed on the issues can take time. The cost of the man-hours alone can make traditional behavior-based safety unattractive to companies in the modern economy. Mathis (2005) recommends a "lean" version, involving fewer people with more expertise.

 

3.1. Current implementation challenges of BBS

Peters and Peters (2006) discuss recent safety developments such as preventing human error, including safety analysis as part of the design, and contributions from allied disciplines. In their study, Peters and Peters provided relevant information on the statistics on the available books on safety subjects in 2006. For occupational safety: Amazon.com titles (4,354); Library of Congress titles (N/A). For safety engineering: Amazon.com titles (2,705); Library of Congress titles (N/A). For occupational safety and safety engineering: Amazon.com titles (N/A); Library of Congress titles (10,000).

 Searches for current statistics of books on safety subjects were conducted in April 2010 using the text string in the left column for keyword searches. The Amazon title count was obtained from Amazon.com and the Library of Congress title count was obtained from the archive of World Catalogues (WorldCat). Without adequate information on how Peters and Peters (2006) searched their titles, a direct comparison is unlikely; however, the increase in number of books is encouraging.  It is our expectation that expanding the search beyond books would yield larger results.For occupational safety: Amazon.com titles (12,304); Library of Congress titles (37,672). For safety engineering: Amazon.com titles (12,704); Library of Congress titles (47,025). For occupational safety and safety engineering: Amazon.com titles (3,185); Library of Congress titles (2,181). As in any plan touted as a panacea or cure-all, caution must be used in its presentation to management and the public Cooper (2009) lists the components of an ideal behavioral models.

 

Components of an ideal process (Adapted from Cooper, 2009)

What

Identify unsafe behaviors

Develop observation checklists

Educate everyone

Assess ongoing safety behavior

Provide limitless feedback on results

Goal-setting

Training

Incentives

Declare your purpose

Adjust to the company

 

How

From injury and near-hit incident reports

Include behaviors implicated in injuries or accidents

"Tell and sell to all." Train observers and facilitators

Conduct regular behavioral observations

Verbal, graphical, and written feedback

Knowing the goal makes it easier to reach

Teach the proper, safe way. Lead by example.

Reward in public, criticize in private. Open-door for reporting

People respond better to a common cause

Adaptation to the unique needs of the company

 

Peters and Peters (2006) recommend going beyond the quick fixes and consider the organization as a whole, discover patterns and develop algorithms to deal with problems before they arise, and use remedies targeted at the root causes.  Identify the problem, find a remedy, apply, verify, follow-up, and watch for other effects that the action may have caused.  It is however, very important to always remember that there is no simple, one-size-fits-all formula that offers the unique solution, since individual personalities affect behavior as well (Gellar, 2009).

 

4.0. Innovative techniques in BBS Program

Bringing more tools and expertise from the sociology and psychology professions could provide more ways to make the behavioral-based safety program more effective.  Also, incorporating ideas from systems and safety engineering could be useful in the more efficient integration of the environmental side of the triangle. This would keep the "blame game" of the behavioral side in perspective. Sheehy (2004) based his program development on risk reduction. Having a program based solely on not having accidents, or rewarding the whole group when none are reported, may invite underreporting and the ire of OSHA. Sheehy's (2004) experiment began two years after such a reporting incentive was stopped at a large electrical utility.  The trick was to find a new program that was based on risk reduction rather than reporting, and to soothe the feelings of the workers that had become accustomed to an annual reward for no reported accidents and that also felt all departments needed to be treated fairly. At the time the new program was proposed, the company was wrapping up plans for a new way to improve reporting of unsafe conditions and near-misses which could also be used to evaluate ways to reduce risk.

            Sheehy (2004) reports that the two programs were successfully combined and several benefits were realized. Benefits included more and better quality reports, several significant risks were corrected, and a large number of smaller risks were reported and corrected. On the flip side, some employees submitted trivial reports increasing the workload of the reviewers, some supervisors complained that their workload increased because they had to edit and research more reports, and a few still longed for the old days when rewards were more freely given (Sheehy, 2004). The Report Review Committee met monthly and used a matrix to evaluate the reports for written quality and proposal effectiveness.  They developed worksheets to simplify and standardize this process.  Sheehy concluded that the most important things learned from this experiment was to coach senior management on the ideas that incentives for lack of accidents were not only ineffective but could lead to underreporting, and that understanding how to reduce risk and taking action on it was the best way to effectively reduce injury and loss. 

 

Summary of the Report Review Committee's Quality Scorecard.

Evaluation factors (Maximum: 10 pts. each)

1) Timeliness of supervisor notification

2) Timeliness of written report submitted

3) What happened? (Sufficient details include when, where, sequence, accuracy, etc.) 

4) Why did it happen? (ID substandard actions or conditions)

5) Why did it happen? (Why substandard actions or conditions existed)

6) What could have been done? (Why wasn't this anticipated?)

7) Policies, standards, procedures (ID these and what didn't work: not clear? Or accurate?

Corrective actions (who, what, when, and how often)

9) Corrective actions (effectively address the underlying causes for the long term)

10) Risk evaluation (probability and severity of recurrence before and after corrective action)

Total score

            In another related research, Scott-Ladd and Chan (2004) proposed Emotional intelligence as the building block for organizational learning. Emotional intelligence, with its knowledge, perception and regulation, is only available to help the organization if it is recognized and enabled. Modern organizations must be flexible and able to change rapidly to adapt to a changing marketplace. Providing employees with clear operating boundaries and allowing them to participate in decision-making will make better use of their emotional intelligence in the interest of enabling the company to manage these changes and improve organizational performance. Organizational learning involves "personal mastery, mental models, shared vision, team learning and systems thinking". Companies that involve the employees, who are close to and will be affected by the reason for the decision, will reap continuing benefits as these employees are able to adapt their area to changing needs. It is also important that these employees have a clear, well defined role in the process. Encouraging ownership of the process will result in greater commitment to it and the company.

 

5.0.Future challenges

Mathis (2009) brings to light the "seven deadly sins" of behavior-based safety from the Unions' observations: Blaming, confronting, idealism, punishing, isolationism, exclusion, and inflexibility. To effectively use behavior-based safety, these pitfalls must be recognized and addressed. Blaming the worker alone is missing the effects that conditions and organizational issues can have. The worker's behavior is only one part of the equation. Confrontation between coworkers over perceived safety issues may make for conflict, and again puts the blame on the worker's behavior. Some companies consider behavior-based safety to be the only program they need, neglecting engineering, mechanical, and procedural effects.  Punishing someone for getting "caught" in unsafe behaviors implies that coworkers are spying on each other and that the guilty party was intentionally being unsafe. Some approaches to behavior-based safety appear to exclude management and some the Unions. Neither is necessary nor advised.

Flexibility is one of the greatest assets of behavior-based safety. Adjusting and readjusting as time, culture, technology, and economics change is vital. Scott-Ladd and Chan's vision for future directions involve testing of new participation models in various environments. Variables that might affect the process include, "leadership style, power relationships, work climate, culture, and industry type". The needs of a newly-formed company will be different than those of a more mature firm. Expanding the view to the entire business world introduces cultural differences that influence emotional intelligence and could provide a wonderful reservoir of new ideas, and require promotion of "improved cross-cultural interactions" (Scott-Ladd and Chan, 2004)

 

6.0.Conclusion

        This paper provided a comprehensive overview of relevant historical studies behind development of behavior-based safety, attempts to demonstrate its effectiveness, flaws and future potential. Behavior-based safety is more than the "flavor of the week" in terms of safety programs.  It is the culmination of many years of development and the stepping stone to future, even more effective programs. Without considering behavior factors, engineering measures alone are not enough. Likewise, without considering engineering factors, behavior training is not enough. Management must understand the importance of supporting the development and changes within the behavior leg of safety management's three-legged stool. Understanding the human variables and recognizing differences, as well as encouraging talents would eventually provide modern companies with the best use of the human resources at their command. A thoughtful combination of management, psychology, and safety principles is required to create a more safety-oriented, favorable and efficient place to work.

 

References

Geller, E. S., 1989. Using television to promote safety belt use, in Public Communication Campaigns, 2nd ed., Rice, R. E. and Atkins, C. K., Eds., SAGE Publications, Newberry Park, CA.

Geller, E. S., 1994. Ten principles for achieving total safety culture. Professional Safety, 39(9), 18-24.

Geller, E. S., Lehman, G. R., and Kalsher, M. J., 1989. Behavior Analysis Training for Occupational Safety, Make-A-Difference, Inc., Newport, VA.

Jennison-Goonan, K., 2007. Caring culture and results focus lead to Baldrige award. Quality Progress, 40(3), 41-48.

Peters, G., and Peters, B., 2006. Compromises in the Pursuit of Safety: Negotiation and communication improve outcomes. Professional Safety, 51(8), 33-37.

Mathis, T., 2005. Lean behavior-based safety. Occupational Hazards, 67(5), 33-35.

Mathis, T., 2009. Unions and Behavior-Based Safety: The 7 deadly sins. EHS Today, 2(10), 22-25.

Salazar, N., 2006. Applying the Deming philosophy to the safety system. Professional Safety, 51(8), 52-57.

Scott-Ladd, B., and Chan C., 2004. Emotional intelligence and participation in decision-making: strategies for promoting organizational learning and change. Strategic Change, 13(2), 95-105. doi:10.1002/jsc.668.

Sheehy, E. J., 2004. Effective safety incentives. Professional Safety, 49(2), 40.

Skinner, B.F., 1950. Are theories of learning necessary? Psychological Review, 57(4), 193-216.

 

 

About the Author

Dr. Samuel A. Oyewole is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Health and Safety Engineering in the Dept. of Energy and Mineral Engineering, Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Samuel Oyewole obtained his Ph.D. in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University. He has published papers in several professional conferences and research journals. Dr. Oyewole is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), and the Human Factors Engineering Society (HFES).

 

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Is it normal to get Canker sores on the base of bottom, FRONT gums?

I have a REALLY small canker sore on my bottom, front gums. I kinda knew it was coming because the last few days my gum there was sore. I started rinsing my mouth with a baking soda/water solution and the damn canker still broke through. It's really tiny, but it still burns and is a little painful. Back in Feb, I had a big one at the base of my left, bottom, side gums, but none since then. I just wanna know if where I have my canker now is a general place.

I'm using a canker cover now, hopefully since the canker is small, it'll go away faster.

I get them pretty much everywhere in my mouth because of my braces, as they tend to irritate even on the "front sides". Canker sores can be caused by various things, including a increase of acidity in the mouth to even a virus - so they can honestly appear ANYWHERE.

If it doesn't go away in 3-4 days or if you notice any other symptoms that are accompanying it such as tooth pain, fever, nausea, or swollen gums/ pus coming from the gums -- get to your dentist asap, as it could be a sign of something else such as an abscess.

Meanwhile you can rinse your mouth out with what you have been using or try a mouthwash designed for mouth sores such as Peroxyl. You can also use Oragel to help soothe the pain.

Trigon TTQC-29 review (Bike Radar)

Trigon might not have the catchiest model names but they’ve been turning out
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years.

Their aero flagship doesn't quite live up to the fantastic Trigon promise
though. "Light as a feather, fast as a stallion” might be true, but we wish
they’d broken in the horse a bit more before turning it loose.

#### Ride & handling: Lively on climbs and out of corners

While the frame isn’t short of some sizeable section tubes, it’s where they’re
put and how they’re arranged that creates the overall character of the Trigon.
As you’d hope for a £5,000-plus superbike, it’s no slouch when it comes to
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flex your muscles on the flat or up climbs. In fact despite the skinny-looking
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crank and back wheel, and the actual bar and extensions are impressively stiff
too. Add low frame weight and healthily slim bike BMI and forays on to our
hillier test routes were relished rather than regretted.

While the contact points themselves are firmly responsive, overall ...

Bike Radar

Coe's Quest - Bottom-Level Base