March 20, 2002—Safety suffers from the “flavor of the month” syndrome, states E. Scott Geller, Ph.D., in his new book, “The Participation Factor—How to Increase Involvement in Occupational Safety” recently released by the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE).
Close to 6000 people died last year from job-related injuries, and thousands more were injured or contracted occupational-related diseases according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Dr. Geller believes too many occupational safety articles and books approach the human dynamics of safety from a “common sense” perspective—which, he says, is biased and often leads to the wrong results. For instance, what safety slogans work best; what kinds of incentive/reward programs increase participation; how can a performance appraisal be constructive and improve a person’s competence; when do scare tactics motivate appropriate action; what safety performance metrics should we use to facilitate positive stress rather than negative stress (or distress); and, what kinds of safety processes release the creative powers of line workers?
Included in his book is a new Social Influence Survey designed to assess and teach the social dynamics of safety. Some of the chapters include: The Psychology of Non-Participation; The Benefits of Self-Persuasion; The Need for Competence; The Support of Safety Conversation; and, The Essentials of Effective Leadership.
Geller’s book explains why punishment, referred to as “discipline” in industrial settings, usually does more harm than good to correct or improve behavior. “The key to preventing work-related injuries is to get more people involved in programs and processes designed to improve occupational safety,” says Geller.
For more than 30 years, Dr. Geller has been a psychology professor at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He is a senior partner of Safety Performance Solutions, a company that works with public and private organizations to tailor training and implementation efforts in behavior-based and person-based safety.
The Participation Factor is available for ASSE members for $39.95 and for non-ASSE members for $49.95 by emailing ASSE, telephoning 847-699-2929 or directly through ASSE’s web site.
