Assessing the impact of risk-taking behavior on road crash involvement among University students residing in two Mediterranean countries

Surveillance systems are indispensable for injury prevention; yet, detailed electronic records are rarely available. The “Student’s Health Card” is a self-reporting electronic tool addressing health issues of University students, while aiming to actively involve them in preventive practices and health promotion. Utilizing data from the injury prevention related section, this study sought to investigate the impact of risk-taking behavior on road crash involvement among University students residing in two Mediterranean countries. A total of 978 University students, 451 Greek and 527 Italian, provided information on prior road crash involvement, as well as on eight behavioral variables, comprising a risky behavior score. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed. The already known tendency for clustering of risky behaviors was evident. One degree increment in the risky behavior score was found to increase the risk of road crash involvement by 35%. Driving after drinking (OR = 2.55, CI = 1.53–4.26), riding with a drunk driver (OR = 2.19, CI = 1.08–4.45) and tobacco smoking (OR = 1.95, CI = 1.18–3.22) significantly multiplied the risk. Despite their better compliance with safety measures, Italian students, compared with Greek, reported worse alcohol-related driving habits and engaged more frequently in mobile phone use while driving. Clustering of risky behaviors was found to be an important predictor of road crash involvement. Screening and awareness of risk-taking propensity of University students could guide early intervention. The “Student’s Health Card” could provide, at minimal cost, reliable risk-taking and road crash involvement information, which is needed for both personal risk assessment and surveillance purposes.     

Perspectives on safety: The impact of group membership,work factors and trust on safety performance in UK and Norwegian drilling company employees

This study is anchored in a contractor company providing well services for platform drilling on the Norwegian (NCS) and the UK Continental Shelves (UKCS). The research project has as its point of departure the potential influences of group level characteristics, structural work factors, trust, and safety behaviour on safety performance. Do perceptions and performance differ across Shelves? Are “nomadic” groups or employees that have more unpredictable shift rotations more exposed to accidents than others? Is high trust and sound safety behaviour enhancing good safety performance? The results are based on questionnaire data from two samples of personnel distributed across three installations on the UKCS and nine on the NCS with a response rate of 67%: N = 170 (UKCS) and N = 621 (NCS). In addition, two focus group interviews were held in each country, with 15 participants in each. The results show that our model makes sense. Shelf shows a significant influence on safety performance in all but the final stage in our five-step logistic regression model, indicating that the effect may be mediated by safety compliance and safety participation. Installations and different work teams have different exposure and structural work factors matter significantly. Somewhat counter-intuitively, employees who have a “nomadic” status and who hold the least regular shift rotations appear to have a lower risk of being involved in incidents. High trust in workmates buffers against incident involvement and the same applies for high safety compliance. The results, challenges and implications for research and safety practitioners are discussed.     

Hospitalizations for immersion-related injuries in Alaska 1991–2000

ObjectiveThis study analyzed factors associated with injuries to hospitalized victims of nonfatal immersion-related events in Alaska from 1991 through 2000.DataAlaska Trauma Registry (ATR) records of victims of nonfatal immersion events requiring hospitalization were examined to identify factors associated with injury outcomes. Subjects were divided into two groups: the “immersion only” (IO) group had no additional injuries associated with their immersion-related events, while subjects in the “associated injury” (AI) group incurred additional trauma during injury events.ResultsThere were 176 ATR records of nonfatal immersion events. In 87 (49.5%) cases, hospitalizations were due to the effects of immersion only (IO group). In 89 (50.5%) cases, hospitalizations were due not only to the effects of immersion, but also due to additional injuries occurring immediately before or while immersion took place (AI group). The final logistic regression model revealed statistically significant relationships between age greater than 12 years, female gender, white ethnicity, and operation of water transport vehicles, and increased risk for associated injury outcomes (p < 0.05).DiscussionThis study is the first of its kind to analyze factors associated with the most severe nonfatal immersion-related injuries in Alaska, and identifies target populations for future safety campaigns.     

Risk assessment of safety and health (RASH) for building construction

In this research Risk Assessment of Safety and Health RASH method for building construction has been developed with risks classified into Safety Risks and Health Risks. 11 factors representing safety risks and 8 factors representing health risks were identified based on field survey in Oman. 40 Safety and Health specialists were involved in carrying out risk assessment using the existing method of risk analysis RA and the proposed RASH method. It was found that RASH method resulted in superior accuracy for assessment of risk zones than the existing RA method. The accuracy by RASH was almost twice the accuracy by RA. The overall percentages of the correct answers for the four scenarios using the RASH method and the RA method were 72.5 percent and 40 percent respectively. The proposed RASH method gave fewer errors than the existing RA method for all scenarios. Two scenarios were found to be the most problematic ones with largest overestimation of risks occur when using the existing RA method. Wilcoxon Ranked Test showed that the two methods are significantly different (z = −3.357, p > 0.01). The new method RASH is statistically acceptable and it resulted in better response in terms of estimating the risk than the RA method.     

Association between safety leading indicators and safety climate levels

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to evaluate the association of leading indicators for occupational health and safety, particularly safety inspections and non-compliances, with safety climate levels.MethodsNordic Occupational Safety Climate Assessment Questionnaire was employed to evaluate safety climate in cross-sectional design. The geographically diverse population of the inspection body made it possible to conduct the survey across 10 provinces in Iran. 89 completed questionnaires were obtained with a response rate of 47%. Except for management safety justice, the internal consistency of other six dimensions was found to be acceptable (α ≥ 0.7).ResultsMean scores of dimensions ranged from 3.50 in trust in the efficacy of safety systems (SD = 0.38) to 2.98 in workers' safety priority and risk non-acceptance (SD = 0.47). Tukey HSD tests indicated a statistically significant difference of mean scores among groups undergoing different number of safety inspections and those receiving different number of non-compliances (p < 0.05), with no significant differences based on safety training man-hours and sessions (p > 0.05). Spearman's rank-order correlation showed no relationship between work experience and number of non-compliances (correlation coefficient = − 0.04, p > 0.05) and between safety training man-hours and number of non-compliances (correlation coefficient = − 0.15, p > 0.05).ConclusionsOur results indicate that safety climate levels are influenced by number of safety inspections and the resultant non-compliances.Practical applicationsFindings suggest that safety non-compliances detected as a result of conducting safety inspections could be used to monitor the safety climate state. Establishing plans to conduct scheduled safety inspections and recording findings in the form of safety non-compliance and monitoring their trend could be used to monitor levels of safety climate.     

A field assessment of floor slipperiness in a fish market in Taiwan

A field assessment of floor slipperiness in 10 fish stands in a fish market in Taiwan was conducted using both friction measurements and subjective ratings. The friction measurements were conducted using the Portable Skid Resistance Tester (PSRT). The subjective ratings of floor slipperiness of both the workers and the customers were collected. The friction measurement results showed that the sink areas had both the lowest friction values and subjective ratings. The overall friction measurement results and the subjective ratings were in fair agreement (r = 0.46 and ρ = 0.49). The customers perceived the walkways as somewhere between “very slippery” to “somewhat slippery” and the picking-up areas as “very slippery.” These were different from the perceptions of the workers where they perceived both areas as “somewhat slippery.”     

Prevalence and demographic differences in microaccidents and safety behaviors among young workers in Canada

IntroductionThe present study examines the self-reported frequency of non-lost work time workplace injuries (“microaccidents”) and the frequency of three types of work-related safety behaviors (i.e., safety voice, safety compliance, and safety neglect) recalled over a four-week period.MethodWe analyzed data on microaccidents and safety behaviors from 19,547 young workers (aged 15–25 years, Mdn = 18 years; 55% male) from multiple Canadian provinces.ResultsApproximately one-third of all young workers recalled experiencing at least one microaccident at work in the last four weeks. Comparisons across three age groups revealed that younger workers, particularly between the ages of 15–18, reported more frequent microaccidents, less safety voice, less safety compliance, and more safety neglect than workers aged 19–22. This pattern of results also held for comparisons between workers in 19–22 and 23–25 age groups, except for safety voice which did not differ between these two older age groups. In terms of gender, males and females reported the same frequency of microaccidents, but males reported more safety voice, more safety compliance, and more safety neglect than females did. The results and limitations of the present study are discussed.ConclusionFrequency of microaccidents and safety behavior vary among young worker age sub-groups.     

Drivers who don't comply with a minimum passing distance rule when passing bicycle riders

Introduction: Drivers' passing cyclists closely can contribute to crashes, falls, and intimidation, which may discourage cycling. In response, minimum passing distance (MPD) rules have been introduced in many jurisdictions. This study examined the factors associated with non-compliance with a MPD rule. Method: An online survey of 3,769 drivers in Queensland, Australia was administered 1 year after a MPD rule began. It assessed compliance with and attitudes toward the rule. Linear regression modeling was used to examine which attitudinal and demographic factors were associated with non-compliance. Results: The percentage of drivers who reported that they did not comply with the road rule “most of the time” or “almost always” was 35.5% in speed zones of ≤ 60 km/h and 31.8% in speed zones of > 60 km/h. Associated with a greater likelihood of being non-compliant were: only infrequently observing motorists giving bicycle riders more distance when overtaking; greater awareness of bicycle riders when driving on the road; disagreeing that the rule had changed the person's driving; agreeing that the rule was making overtaking bicycle riders difficult; disagreeing that the rule had made it safer for bicycle riders; agreeing that it was difficult to judge 1 or 1.5 m when overtaking a bicycle rider; and agreeing that giving 1.5 m clearance in > 60 km/h zones to bicycle riders was annoying (p < .05). In high speed zones, drivers aged 18–39 years were more likely than those aged 50 + years to be non-compliant (p < .05). Compliance was not associated with driver sex, amount of driving, or perceived level of enforcement. Conclusions: Reported non-compliance with the MPD rule is widespread and is related more to attitudinal than demographic factors. Practical applications: Strategies for helping drivers to judge passing distance and improve their understanding of the importance for cyclist safety of leaving an adequate distance are needed.     

Prevention of occupational injuries: Evidence for effective good practices in foundries

IntroductionOccupational injuries are a relevant research and practical issue. However, intervention studies evaluating the effectiveness of workplace injury prevention programs are seldom performed. Method: The effectiveness of a multifaceted intervention aimed at reducing occupational injury rates (incidence/employment-based = IR, frequency/hours-based = FR, severity = SR) was evaluated between 2008 and 2013 in 29 Italian foundries (22 ferrous; 7 non-ferrous; 3,460 male blue collar workers/year) of varying sizes. Each foundry established an internal multidisciplinary prevention team for risk assessment, monitoring and prevention of occupational injuries, involving employers, occupational physicians, safety personnel, workers' representatives, supervisors. Targets of intervention were workers, equipment, organization, workplace, job tasks. An interrupted time series (ITS) design was applied. Results: 4,604 occupational injuries and 83,156 lost workdays were registered between 2003 and 2013. Statistical analysis showed, after intervention, a reduction of all injury rates (− 26% IR, − 15% FR, −18% SR) in ferrous foundries and of SR (− 4%) in non-ferrous foundries. A significant (p = 0.021) ‘step-effect’ was shown for IR in ferrous foundries, independent of secular trends (p < 0.001). Sector-specific benchmarks for all injury rates were developed separately for ferrous and non-ferrous foundries. Conclusions: Strengths of the study were: ITS design, according to standardized quality criteria (i.e., at least three data points before and three data points after intervention; clearly defined intervention point); pragmatic approach, with good external validity; promotion of effective good practices. Main limitations were the non-randomized nature and a medium length post-intervention period. In conclusion, a multifaceted, pragmatic and accountable intervention is effective in reducing the burden of occupational injuries in small-, medium- and large-sized foundries. Practical Applications: The study poses the basis for feasible good practice guidelines to be implemented to prevent occupational injuries, by means of sector-specific numerical benchmarks, with potentially relevant impacts on workers, companies, occupational health professionals and society at large.     

Substance exposure and helmet use in all-terrain vehicle accidents: Nine years of experience at a level 1 trauma center

IntroductionThe surging popularity of all-terrain vehicles (ATV) in the United States has caused an “epidemic of injuries and mortality.” The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported 99,600 injuries and 426 fatalities from ATV accidents in 2013. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between helmet use and positive toxicology screenings on outcomes in ATV accident victims.MethodsThis is a retrospective study of patients admitted to a Level 1 Trauma Center in southwestern West Virginia following an ATV accident between 2005 and 2013. Data were obtained from the institution's Trauma Registry.ResultsA total of 1,857 patients were admitted during the study period with 39 (1.9%) reported deaths. Positive serum alcohol and/or urine drug screens were obtained in 66.4% of the patients tested (n = 1,293). Those with positive screenings were 9.5% less likely to utilize a helmet (13.2% vs. 22.7%, p < 0.001); and the lack of helmet use was associated with an increase in traumatic brain injury (57.1% vs. 41.7%, p < 0.001). Positivity for substances or the lack of helmet use was significantly associated with higher morbidity. Lack of helmet use resulted in a 3.94-fold increase in the risk of discharge in a vegetative state or death.ConclusionsDrugs and alcohol use may predispose riders to be less likely to wear helmets and significantly increase the risk of a poor clinical outcome following an ATV accident. Rigorous efforts should be made to enhance safety measures through educational endeavors and amendment of current regulations to promote safe and responsible use of ATVs.Practical applicationsModification of regulatory requirements should be considered in order to mandate the wearing of helmets during ATV operation. In addition, expansion of safety programs should be considered in an effort to improve availability, affordability and awareness of safe ATV practices.     

Conscientious personality and young drivers' crash risk

Introduction: Personality characteristics are associated with many risk behaviors. However, the relationship between personality traits, risky driving behavior, and crash risk is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between personality, risky driving behavior, and crashes and near-crashes, using naturalistic driving research methods. Method: Participants' driving exposure, kinematic risky driving (KRD), high-risk secondary task engagement, and the frequency of crashes and near-crashes (CNC) were assessed over the first 18 months of licensure using naturalistic driving methods. A personality survey (NEO-Five Factor Inventory) was administered at baseline. The association between personality characteristics, KRD rate, secondary task engagement rate, and CNC rate was estimated using a linear regression model. Mediation analysis was conducted to examine if participants' KRD rate or secondary task engagement rate mediated the relationship between personality and CNC. Data were collected as part of the Naturalistic Teen Driving Study. Results: Conscientiousness was marginally negatively associated with CNC (path c = − 0.034, p = .09) and both potential mediators KRD (path a = − 0.040, p = .09) and secondary task engagement while driving (path a = − 0.053, p = .03). KRD, but not secondary task engagement, was found to mediate (path b = 0.376, p = .02) the relationship between conscientiousness and CNC (path c′ = − 0.025, p = .20). Conclusions: Using objective measures of driving behavior and a widely used personality construct, these findings present a causal pathway through which personality and risky driving are associated with CNC. Specifically, more conscientious teenage drivers engaged in fewer risky driving maneuvers, and suffered fewer CNC. Practical Applications: Part of the variability in crash risk observed among newly licensed teenage drivers can be explained by personality. Parents and driving instructors may take teenage drivers' personality into account when providing guidance, and establishing norms and expectations about driving.     

Fate of trace tetracycline with resistant bacteria and resistance genes in an improved AAO wastewater treatment plant

The fate of trace tetracycline, tetracycline resistant bacteria (TRB) and tetracycline resistant genes (TRGs) in an improved anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (AAO) wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) was investigated in this study. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and conventional heterotrophic plate count method were used to measure eight tet genes (tetA, tetB, tetC, tetE, tetM, tetO, tetS and tetX) and TRB, respectively. The TRB percent of total heterotrophic bacteria (THB) is about 1.31–24.1% in WWTP influent. Tet gene abundance in the WWTP varied greatly among the gene types. The concentrations of TRGs in effluent samples ranged from 7.11 × 10⁻⁹ to 1.53 × 10⁻⁴ copies/copy 16S rRNA gene. TRB and THB, tetM and tetO, tetE and tetX, but not the others, showed a significant correlation with each other (p < 0.01). The relationships between ribosomal protection protein genes, enzymatic modification gene and corresponding concentrations of antibiotics were found to be considerably significant (R² = 0.898, p < 0.01 for ribosomal protection protein genes and R² = 0.872, p < 0.05 for enzymatic modification gene).     

Educational status and organizational safety climate: Does educational attainment influence workers’ perceptions of workplace safety?

From a practical perspective, understanding the impact of education on perceptions of workplace safety would benefit management’s decisions regarding workers’ adaptability, general work effectiveness, accident frequency, implementation of safety management policies, and handling of education-related accident characteristics. The current study thus examined the relationship between educational attainment and (i) safety perception, (ii) job satisfaction, (iii) compliance with safety management policies, and (iv) accident frequency. Participants were Ghanaian industrial workers (N = 320) categorized into four educational groups based on their responses: basic education 50% (n = 159); secondary education, n = 98 (30%); vocational/professional education, 17% (n = 56); and university education, 3% (n = 7). Workplace safety perception was assessed with Hayes et al.’s 50-item Work Safety Scale (WSS): a scale that effectively captures the dimensions identified by safety experts to influence perceptions of workplace safety. Multivariate analysis (MANOVA) was used to test for differences of statistical significance. Posterior comparison with t-test consistently revealed significant differences between the two higher-educated cohorts and their lower-educated counterparts. The results indicated a positive association between education and safety perception. Higher-educated workers recorded the best perceptions on safety, indicated the highest level of job satisfaction, were the most compliant with safety procedures and recorded the lowest accident involvement rate.     

Exploratory study on safety climate in Chinese manufacturing enterprises

This study was conducted in eastern cities of China; 1060 employees were sampled from 144 enterprises located in East China, and 796 (75.1%) responded validly. The level of safety climate of Chinese manufacturing enterprises as well as the differences in safety climate between large enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were examined. This study revealed that the safety climate level that the employees’ perceived was rather low in Chinese manufacturing enterprises, and differences in terms of mean scores of total safety climate, factors composing the safety climate, and items to measure this climate between large enterprises and SMEs were statistically significant (at p < 0.05). Among all the factors, the largest difference between large enterprises and SMEs was the employees’ perception of safety training, followed by management support. It suggests that SMEs should pay more attention to safety training and management support to improve the safety climate.     

Efficacy of roll stability control and lane departure warning systems using carrier-collected data

IntroductionLarge truck crashes have significantly declined over the last 10 years, likely due, in part, to the increased use of onboard safety systems (OSS). Unfortunately, historically there is a paucity of data on the real-world efficacy of these devices in large trucks. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the two OSSs, lane departure warning (LDW) and roll stability control (RSC), using data collected from motor carriers.MethodA retrospective cohort approach was used to assess the safety benefits of these OSSs installed on Class 7 and 8 trucks as they operated during normal revenue-producing deliveries. Data were collected from 14 carriers representing small, medium, and large carriers hauling a variety of commodities. The data consisted of a total of 88,112 crash records and 151,624 truck-years that traveled 13 billion miles over the observation period.ResultsThe non-LDW cohort had an LDW-related crash rate that was 1.917 times higher than the LDW cohort (p = 0.001), and the non-RSC cohort had an RSC-related crash rate that was 1.555 times higher than the RSC cohort (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe results across analyses indicated a strong, positive safety benefit for LDW and RSC under real-world conditions.Practical applicationsThe results support the use of LDW and RSC in reducing the crash types associated with each OSS.     

Cross-cultural comparisons of traffic safety,risk perception,attitudes and behaviour

The core aim of the present study is to examine cultural differences in risk perception and attitudes towards traffic safety and risk, taking behaviour in the Norwegian and the Ghanaian public. An additional aim is to discuss the applicability of various traffic measures, suited for low and middle income countries in Africa.Sample: The results of the present study are based on two self-completion questionnaire surveys carried out in February and March 2006. The first was a representative sample of the Norwegian public above 18 years of age (N = 247). The second was a stratified sample of Ghanaian respondents (N = 299). In Ghana the data was collected in Accra and Cape Coast.The results showed that there is potential for further improvement of safety attitudes and risk behaviour among Ghanaians as well as Norwegians. There were also differences in the respondents’ evaluation of attitudes, risk perception and behaviour. Perceived risk and attitudes also significantly predicted risk behaviour and accidents/collisions. The implications of these results for traffic safety will be discussed.     

Differences in risk perception,priorities, worry and demand for risk mitigation in transport among Norwegians in 2004 and 2008

The present study aimed to investigate differences in risk perception, the demand for risk mitigation, priorities and worry related to transport among the Norwegian public in 2004 and 2008. Age, gender, education, driver licence and number of injuries in transport were controlled for. The comparison was carried out with questionnaire surveys among representative samples of the Norwegian public in 2004 (n = 1730) and 2008 (n = 1864). The results showed that the perceived probabilities of transport accidents decreased, whereas the perceived severity of consequences increased during this period. Both samples estimated higher probabilities of accidents by private means of transport. The demand for risk mitigation and priorities related to transport safety increased significantly in the same period. The 2008 sample also reported more worry regarding accidents by private transport. Results were discussed in relation to transport safety campaigns, safety measures and significant accidents which occurred in this period.     

Safety climate differences among job positions in a nuclear decommissioning and demolition industry: Employees’ self-reported safety attitudes and perceptions

This study examined group differences in safety climate among job positions in a nuclear decommissioning and demolition industry in the United States. Safety climate surveys were conducted at 10 locations. Survey responses totaled 1587 out of an available population of 3296 workers for an overall response rate of 48.1%. Significant differences (p < 0.05) in mean safety climate scores, factor scores, and item scores among job positions were observed. Most notably, foremen’s self-reported safety attitudes and perceptions indicate a lower safety climate and suggest the need to target safety improvements at this key organizational level.     

The typology for allocations of societal risk and safety management tasks at the local governmental level – Framing the current directions in Sweden

The starting point for this article is the need to develop empirical insights about contemporary societal risk and safety management practice and executive structures. In order to facilitate insights about societal risk and safety management in a Scandinavian welfare context we use Sweden and its local governmental level (municipal) as an empirical frame in this paper. The aim for this article is to analyse how a variety of risk and safety management tasks are divided within the Swedish municipalities. The objectives are to frame the current directions for internal allocations of risk and safety issues by providing an empirically based executive typology and to contemplate the implications and future research needs that arise from that management pattern.The analysis is based on statistical analysis of information from a web-survey with chief officials (n = 1283) with responsibilities for different municipal functions and sectors. In this study the responses to one of the survey questions are used for statistical analysis. The analyzed question focused on the degree that the respondents estimated that their administrative sector or function handled a selection of risk and safety management assignments (n = 45). A factor analysis was applied to identify patterns in the dataset. The analysis resulted in an eight factor solution with a high degree of explained variance (74.3%). The results provide an elementary contribution to the understanding of the current societal risks and safety management directions.     

Evaluation of a video-based measure of driver heart rate

IntroductionInternal driver events such as emotional arousal do not consistently elicit observable behaviors. However, heart rate (HR) offers promise as a surrogate measure for predicting these states in drivers. Imaging photoplethysmography (IPPG) can measure HR from face video recorded in static, indoor settings, but has yet to be examined in an in-vehicle driving environment.MethodsParticipants (N = 10) completed an on-road driving task whilst wearing a commercial, chest-strap style heart rate monitor (“baseline”). IPPG was applied to driver face video to estimate HR and the two measures of HR were compared.ResultsFor 4 of 10 participants, IPPG produced a valid HR signal (± 5 BPM of baseline) between 48 and 75% of trip duration. For the remaining participants, IPPG accuracy was poor (< 20%).ConclusionsIn-vehicle IPPG is achievable, but significant challenges remain.Practical applicationsThe relationship between IPPG accuracy and various confounding factors was quantified for future refinement.