The improvement of health and safety standards within the organizational context is an important issue of global concern. China’s occupational health and safety (OHS) has increasingly drawn national and international attention as it has not kept pace with its globalization of production and trade. The traditional approach to managing workplace safety in China has focused on the technical aspects of engineering systems and processes, and it has attributed the majority of workplace accidents and injuries to unsafe working conditions instead of the unsafe work practices of employees. However, there has been a fundamental shift in the safety management research carried out in many countries and across diverse industries, which aims to measure the impact of attitudinal, organizational, cultural, and social dimensions on occupational safety. This article examines the relationship between safety climate and safety-related behavior in the Chinese context and draws implications for the management of occupational safety in China.
Bandura, Albert.Social Foundations of Thought and Action. Englewood Cliff, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986.
2.
Barling, Julian, and Andrea Zacharatos ."High Performance Safety Systems: Ten Management Practices for Creating Safe Organizations." Manuscript. 2000 .
3.
Barling, Julian, E. Kevin Kelloway, and Roderick D. Iverson ."High-Quality Work, Job Satisfaction, and Occupational Injuries."Journal of Applied Psychology88 (2003): 276-83.
4.
Barraclough, Ian, and Annick Carnino."Safety Culture: Keys for Sustaining Progress."International Atomic Energy Agency Bulletin40, no. 2 (1998): 27-30.
5.
Blair, Earl, and Dong-Chul Seo ."Safety Training: Making the Connection to High Performance."Professional Safety52, no. 10 (2007): 42-8.
6.
Brown, Garrett D."ISHN Global Watch: China Proposes Worker Protection Law."http://www.ishn.com/CDA/Articles/Feature_Article/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000109476 , accessed 12 November 2007.
7.
Brown, Garrett D., and Dara O’Rourke ."Experiments in Transforming the Global Workplace: Incentives and Impediments to Improving Workplace Conditions in China."International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health9, no. 4 (2003): 378-85.
8.
Chen, Meei-Shia."Workers’ Participation and Their Health and Safety Protection in China’s Transitional Industrial Economy."International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health9 ( 2003): 368-77.
9.
Cheyne, Alistair, Amparo Oliver, José M. Tomás , and Sue Cox ."The Architecture of Employee Attitudes to Safety in the Manufacturing Sector."Personnel Review31 (2002): 649-70.
10.
Cheyne, Alistair, Sue Cox, Amparo Oliver, and José M. Tomás."Modeling Safety Climate in the Prediction of Levels of Safety Activity."Work and Stress12 (1998): 255-71.
11.
Christiani, David."Occupational Health in the People’s Republic of China."American Journal of Public Health74, no. 1 (1984): 58-64.
12.
Clissold, Gemma."An Application of Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory to the Explanation of Safety-Related Behavior." PhD diss., Monash University , Melbourne, 2006.
13.
Cohen, Alexander."Factors in Successful Occupational Safety Programs."Journal of Safety Research9 (1977 ): 168-78.
14.
Cohen, H. Harvey, and Robert J. Cleveland ."Safety Program Practices in Record-Holding Plants."Professional Safety28, no. 3 (1983): 26-33.
15.
Conway, Hugh, and Jens Svenson."Occupational Injury and Illness Rates, 1992-96: Why They Fell."Monthly Labor Review (November 1998 ): 34-58.
16.
Cooper, M. Dominic, and Robin A. Phillips . "Exploratory Analysis of the Safety Climate and Safety Behavior Relationship" Journal of Safety Research35 (2004): 497- 512.
17.
Cox, Sue, and Tom Cox ."The Structure of Employee Attitudes to Safety: A European Example."Work and Stress5 (1991): 93-106.
18.
Coyle, Ian R., Stuart D. Sleeman, and Neil Adams."Safety Climate."Journal of Safety Research26 (1995): 247-54.
19.
Cree, Tara, and E. Kevin Kelloway ."Responses to Occupational Hazards: Exit and Participation."Journal of Occupational Health Psychology2 (1997): 304-11.
20.
Dedobbeleer, Nicole, and François Béland."A Safety Climate Measure for Construction Sites."Journal of Safety Research22 (1991): 97-103.
21.
Dedobbeleer, Nicole, and François Béland."Is Risk Perception One of the Dimensions of Safety Climate?" In Occupational Injury: Risk Prevention and Intervention, ed. Anne Marie Feyer and Ann Williamson, 73-81. London : Taylor and Francis, 1998.
22.
DeJoy, David M., Robyn R. M. Gershon, and Bryan S. Schaffer ."Safety Climate: Assessing Management and Organizational Influence on Safety."Professional Safety49, no. 7 (2004): 50-7.
23.
Donald, Ian, and David Canter."Employee Attitudes and Safety in the Chemical Industry."Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industry7 (1994): 203-8.
24.
Embrey, David E."Incorporating Management and Organizational Factors into Probabilistic Safety Assessment."Reliability Engineering and System Safety38 (1992): 199-208.
25.
Fang, Dongping, Yang Chen, and Louisa Wong."Safety Climate in Construction Industry: A Case Study in Hong Kong."Journal of Construction Engineering and Management132, no. 6 ( 2006): 573-84.
26.
Findley, Michael, and June Gorski."OSH Disparities in Developing Countries: The SH&E Professional as an Agent of Change."Professional Safety50, no. 4 (2005): 24-30.
27.
Flin, Rhona, Kathryn Mearns, Paul O’Connor, and Robin Bryden."Measuring Safety Climate: Identifying the Common Features."Safety Science34, nos. 1-3 (2000): 177-92.
28.
Fu, Gui, Cherrie J. Zhu, and Gemma Clissold.China’s OHS Management Strategies: Current Status and Future Directions. Working Paper. Melbourne: Department of Management, Monash University, 2007.
29.
Fu, Gui, Jiang-shi Zhang, and Su-rui Xu."Lun anquan kexue jishu xueke tixi de jiegou he neihan" (Critical examination of safety science). Zhongguo gongcheng kexue (Engineering science)6, no. 8 (2004): 12-17.
30.
Fu, Gui, Xuan-Dong Li, and Jun Li."Shigu de gongxing yuanyin ji qi xingwei kexue yufang celüe" (Common factors leading to accidents and their behavior-based prevention strategies) . Anquan yu huanjing xuebao (Journal of safety and environment)5, no. 1 ( 2005): 80-3.
31.
Glendon, A. Ian, and Debbie K. Litherland ."Safety Climate Factors, Group Differences, and Safety Behavior in Road Construction."Safety Science39, no. 3 ( 2001): 157-88.
32.
Glendon, A. Ian, and Neville A. Stanton ."Perspectives on Safety Culture."Safety Science34, nos. 1-3 (2000): 193-214.
33.
Glick, William H."Conceptualizing and Measuring Organizational and Psychological Climate: Pitfalls in Multilevel Research."Academy of Management Journal10 (1985): 601-16.
34.
Griffin, Mark A., and Andrew Neal."Perceptions of Safety at Work: A Framework for Linking Safety Climate to Safety Performance, Knowledge and Motivation."Journal of Occupational Health Psychology5 ( 2000): 347-58.
35.
Guidotti, Tee L., and Ernest C. Levister , Jr."Occupational Health in China: ‘Rising with Force and Spirit.’"Occupational Medicine45 (1995): 117-24.
36.
Guldenmund, Frank W."The Nature of Safety Culture: A Review of Theory and Research."Safety Science34, nos. 1-3 (2000): 215-57.
37.
Guojia anquan shengchan jiandu guanli zongju (State administration of work safety)."Anquan fenxi: niandu tongji fenxi 2000-2006" (Safety analysis: annual statistical analysis 2000-2006). Various reports . http://www.chinasafety.gov.cn/newpage/aqfx/aqfx_ndtjfx.htm , accessed 24 November 2007.
38.
Guojia anquan shengchan jiandu guanli zongju (State administration of work safety)."Guanyu biaozhang di er jie anquan shengchan keji chengguo jiang huojiang chengguo de jueding" (The results of the second safety products and technology awards). http://www.chinasafety.gov.cn/anquankeji/2005-01/27/content_71357.htm, accessed 22 November 2007.
39.
Harrell, W. Andrew."Perceived Risk of Occupational Injury: Control over Pace of Work and Blue-Collar versus White-Collar Work."Perceptual and Motor Skills70 (1990): 1351-9.
40.
Helmreich, Robert L., Ashleigh C. Merritt, and John A. Wilhelm ."The Evolution of Crew Resource Management Training in Commercial Aviation."International Journal of Aviation Psychology9, no. 1 (1999): 19-32.
41.
Hemingway, Monica A., and Carlla S. Smith ."Organizational Climate and Occupational Stressors as Predictors of Withdrawal Behaviors and Injuries in Nurses."Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology71, no. 3 (1999): 285-99.
42.
Hofmann, David. A., Rick Jacobs, and Frank Landy."High Reliability Process Industries: Individual, Micro and Macro Organizational Influences on Safety Performance."Journal of Safety Research26 ( 1995): 131-49.
43.
Hofmann, David A., and Frederick P. Morgeson ."Safety-Related Behavior as a Social Exchange: The Role of Perceived Organizational Support and Leader-Member Exchange."Journal of Applied Psychology84 (1999): 286-96.
44.
Hofmann, David A., Frederick P. Morgeson, and Stephen J. Gerras ."Climate as a Moderator of the Relationship between Leader-Member Exchange and Content Specific Citizenship: Safety Climate as an Exemplar."Journal of Applied Psychology88 (2003): 170-8.
45.
Hofmann, David A., and Adam Stetzer."The Role of Safety Climate and Communication in Accident Interpretations: Implications for Learning from Negative Events."Academy of Management Journal41 ( 1998): 644-57.
46.
Huang, Ping, and Frank N. Pieke ."China Migration Country Study."Paper presented at the Regional Conference on Migration, Development and Pro-Poor Policy Choices in Asia, Dhaka, June 2003.
47.
Hurst, Nick W., Linda J. Bellamy, Tim A. W. Geyer, and J.A. Astley."A Classification Scheme for Pipework Failures to Include Human Sociotechnical Errors and Their Contribution to Pipework Failure Frequencies."Journal of Hazardous Materials26 (1991): 159-86.
48.
International Labour Organization."Safety in Numbers: Pointers for a Global Safety Culture at Work."Geneva: International Labour Organization, 2003. http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/worldday/report_eng.pdf , accessed 11 November 2007.
49.
Jones, Allan P. and Lawrence R. James."Psychological Climate: Dimensions and Relationships of Individual and Aggregated Work Environment Perceptions."Organizational Behavior and Human Performance23 ( 1979): 201-50.
50.
Kahn, Robert L, Donald M. Wolfe, Robert P. Quinn, and J. Diedrick Snoek .Organizational Stress: Studies in Role Conflict and Ambiguity. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1964.
51.
Lee, Terry."Assessment of Safety Culture at a Nuclear Reprocessing Plant."Work and Stress12, no. 3 (1998): 217-37.
52.
Li, Jizu, Lixun Kang, Zhili Zhou, and Jianli Yang."Meikuang anquan congye renyuan xinli ceping yanjiu" (Study on psychological evaluation system of safety personnel in coal mines) . Zhongguo anquan kexue xuebao (China safety science journal)14, no. 3 ( 2004): 8-11.
53.
Liang, Zai."The Age of Migration in China."Population and Development Review27, no. 3 ( 2001): 499-524.
54.
Lin, Si-Hao, Wen-Juan Tang, Jian-Ying Miao, Zhi-Ming Wang, and Pei-Xi Wang ."Safety Climate Measurement at Workplace in China: A Validity and Reliability Assessment."Safety Science46, no. 7 ( 2008): 1037-46.
55.
Liu, T., M. Zhong, and J. Xing."Industrial Accidents: Challenges for China’s Economic and Social Development."Safety Science43, no. 8 (2005): 503-22.
56.
Machles, David."Why Safety Training May Not Be the Answer."Occupational Health and Safety76, no. 4 (2007): 92.
57.
Manuele, Fred A.On the Practice of Safety. 3d ed. Hoboken, NJ: J. Wiley, 2003.
58.
Mearns, Kathryn, and Rhona Flin."Assessing the State of Organizational Safety: Culture or Climate?"Current Psychology18 (1999): 5-10.
59.
Mearns, Kathryn, Rhona Flin, Rachael Gordon, and Mark Fleming."Measuring Safety Climate on Offshore Installations."Work and Stress12, no. 3 (1998): 238-54.
60.
Mearns, Kathryn, Rhona Flin, Rachael Gordon, and Mark Fleming."Human and Organizational Factors in Offshore Safety."Work and Stress15, no. 2 (2001): 144-60.
61.
Mearns, Kathryn, Sean M. Whitaker, and Rhona Flin."Safety Climate, Safety Management Practice and Safety Performance in Offshore Environments."Safety Science41, no. 8 (2003): 641-80.
62.
Moran, E. Thomas, and J. Fredericks Volkwein ."The Cultural Approach to the Formation of Organizational Climate."Human Relations45 (1992): 19-47.
63.
Mullen, Jane."Investigating Factors that Influence Individual Safety Behavior at Work."Journal of Safety Research35 (2004): 275-85.
64.
Neal, Andrew, Mark A. Griffin, and Peter M. Hart ."The Impact of Organizational Climate on Safety Climate and Individual Behavior."Safety Science34, nos. 1-3 (2000 ): 99-109.
65.
Nelkin, Dorothy, and Michael S. Brown .Workers at Risk: Voices from the Workplace . Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1984.
66.
Pallant, Julie.SPSS Survival Manual: A Step By Step Guide to Data Analysis Using SPSS for Windows. 3d ed. Maidenhead : Open University Press, 2007.
67.
Parker, Sharon K., Carolyn M. Axtell, and Nick Turner."Designing a Safer Workplace: Importance of Job Autonomy, Communication Quality, and Supportive Supervisors."Journal of Occupational Health Psychology6 ( 2001): 211-28.
68.
Payne, Roy L."Climate and Culture: How Close Can They Get?" In Handbook of Organizational Culture and Climate, ed. Neal M. Ashkanasy, Celeste. P. M. Wilderom , and Mark F. Peterson, 163-76. London : Sage, 2000.
69.
Pidgeon, Nick."Safety Culture: Key Theoretical Issues."Work and Stress12 (1998): 202-16.
70.
Pidgeon, Nick, and Mike O’Leary ."Man-made Disasters: Why Technology and Organizations Sometimes Fail."Safety Science34, nos. 1-3 (2000): 15-30.
71.
Pringle, Tim E., and Stephen D. Frost ."The Absence of Rigor and the Failure of Implementation."International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health9 (2003): 309-16.
72.
Prussia, Gregory. E., Karen A. Brown, and P. Geoff Willis ."Mental Models of Safety: Do Managers and Employees See Eye to Eye?"Journal of Safety Research34 (2003): 143-56.
73.
Reason, James."Human Error: Models and Management."The Western Journal of Medicine172 (2000): 393-7.
74.
Reichers, Arnon E., and Benjamin Schneider ."Climate and Culture: An Evolution of Constructs." In Organizational Climate and Culture, ed. Benjamin Schneider, 5-39. Oxford: Jossey-Bass, 1990.
75.
Rentsch, Joan R."Climate and Culture: Interaction and Qualitative Differences in Organizational Meaning."Journal of Applied Psychology75, no. 6 (1990): 668-81.
76.
Richter, Anne, and Christian Koch."Integration, Differentiation and Ambiguity in Safety Cultures."Safety Science42, no. 8 (2004): 703-22.
77.
Rundmo, Torbjørn."Risk Perception and Safety on Offshore Petroleum Platforms-Part II: Perceived Risk, Job Stress and Accidents."Safety Science15, no. 1 ( 1992): 53-68.
78.
Schein, Edgar H.Organizational Culture and Leadership: A Dynamic View. London: Jossey-Bass, 1985.
79.
Schein, Edgar H.Organizational Culture and Leadership. 2d ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass , 1992.
80.
Schneider, Benjamin, and Arnon E. Reichers ."On the Etiology of Climates."Personnel Psychology36 (1983): 19-39.
81.
Schneider, Susan C., and Jean-Louis Barsoux .Managing across Cultures. New York: Prentice Hall, 1997.
82.
Simard, Marcel, and Alain Marchand."The Behavior of First-Line Supervisors in Accident Prevention and Effectiveness in Occupational Safety."Safety Science17, no. 3 ( 1994): 169-85.
83.
Simonds, Rollin H., and Yaghoub Shafai-Sahrai ."Factors Apparently Affecting Injury Frequency in Eleven Matched Pairs of Companies."Journal of Safety Research9, no. 3 ( 1977): 120-7.
84.
Siu, Oi-ling, David R. Phillips, and Tat-wing Leung."Age Differences in Safety Attitudes and Safety Performance in Hong Kong Construction Workers."Journal of Safety Research34, no. 2 ( 2003): 199-205.
85.
Smith, Michael J., H. Harvey Cohen, Alexander Cohen, and Robert J. Cleveland ."Characteristics of Successful Safety Programs."Journal of Safety Research10, no. 1 (1978): 5-15.
86.
Stolovitch, Harold D., and Erica J. Keeps .Training Isn’t Performance. Alexandria, VA: American Society for Training and Development , 2004.
87.
Su, Zhi."Occupational Health and Safety Legislation and Implementation in China."International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health9 (2003): 302-8.
88.
Szudy, Betty, Dara O’Rourke, and Garrett D. Brown ."Developing an Action-Based Health and Safety Training Project in Southern China."International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health9 ( 2003): 357-77.
89.
Takala, Jukka.Introductory Report: Decent Work-safe Work. Geneva : International Labour Organization, 2002.
90.
Takala, Jukka."Safety, Health and Equity at Work."Paper presented at the International Commission on Occupational Health Congress , Iguassu Falls, Brazil, 23-8 February 2003.
91.
Tetrick, Lois. E., and James Campbell Quick."Prevention at Work: Public Health in Occupational Settings." In Handbook of Occupational Health Psychology, ed. James Campbell Quick and Lois E. Tetrick, 1-17. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2003.
92.
Tomás, José M. , José L. Meliá, and Amparo Oliver."A Cross-Validation of Structural Equation Model of Accidents: Organizational and Psychological Variables as Predictors of Work Safety."Work and Stress13, no. 1 (1999): 49-58.
93.
Vecchio-Sadus, Angelica M., and Steven Griffiths ."Marketing Strategies for Enhancing Safety Culture."Safety Science42, no. 7 (2004): 601-19.
94.
Vredenburgh, Alison G."Organizational Safety: Which Management Practices Are Most Effective in Reducing Employee Injury Rates."Journal of Safety Research33 (2002): 259-76.
95.
Wagenaar, Willem A., and Jop Groeneweg ."Accidents at Sea: Multiple Causes and Impossible Consequences."International Journal of Man-Machine Studies29 (1987): 587-98.
96.
Weyman, Andrew, David D. Clarke, and Tom Cox ."Developing a Factor Model of Coal Miners’ Attributions on Risk-taking at Work."Work and Stress17, no. 4 (2003): 306-20.
97.
Wicks, David."Institutionalized Mindsets of Invulnerability: Differentiated Institutional Fields and the Antecedents of Organizational Crisis."Organization Studies22, no. 4 ( 2001): 659- 93.
98.
Wong, Daniel S., Vinit M. Desai, Peter M. Madsen, Karlene H. Roberts, and Anthony Ciavarelli ."Measuring Organizational Safety and Effectiveness at NASA."Engineering Management Journal17, no. 4 (2005): 59-62.
99.
Wright, Chris."Routine Deaths: Fatal Accidents in the Oil Industry."Sociological Review4 (1986): 265-89.
100.
Wright, Tim."The Political Economy of Coal Mine Disasters in China: ‘Your Rice Bowl or Your Life.’"The China Quarterly, no. 179 (2004): 629-46.
101.
Zacharatos, Andrea, Julian Barling, and Roderick D. Iverson ."High-Performance Work Systems and Occupational Safety."Journal of Applied Psychology90 (2005): 77-93.
102.
Zeitlin, Lawrence R."Failure to Follow Safety Instructions: Faulty Communication or Risky Decisions?"Human Factors36 ( 1994): 172-81.
103.
Zhonghua renmin gongheguo guojia tongjiju (National bureau of statistics of China)."Zhongguo tongji nianjian 2007" (China statistical yearbook 2007). http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjsj/ndsj/2007/indexch.htm, accessed 24 October 2008.
104.
Zhu, Cherrie J.Human Resource Management in China: Past, Current and Future HR Practices in the Industrial Sector. London and New York: Routledge Curzon, 2005 .
105.
Zhu, Ying, and Malcolm Warner."Changing Chinese Employment Relations since WTO Accession."Personnel Review34, no. 3 (2005): 354-69.
106.
Zohar, Dov."Safety Climate in Industrial Organizations: Theoretical and Applied Implications."Journal of Applied Psychology65 (1980): 96-102.
107.
Zohar, Dov."The Effects of Leadership Dimensions, Safety Climate, and Assigned Priorities on Minor Injuries in Work Groups."Journal of Organizational Behavior23 (2002): 75-92.
