A Bayesian network model integrating organizational, individual and psychological factors for strengthening construction worker safety behavior.

Objectives. Construction worker safety behavior (CWSB) may be affected by a confluence of multilevel and interrelated factors. Cultivating and maintaining CWSB is vital for improving construction safety. Current studies focus on organization-level or individual-level CWSB antecedents. However, few studies have examined the influence of psychological factors on CWSB, thereby reducing the joint effects of multilevel factors on CWSB. Methods. To determine effective strategies for strengthening CWSB, this study adopted the Bayesian network technique to explore the interrelationships between CWSB and its antecedent factors. A Bayesian belief network model was developed and trained with data collected from Chinese construction workers, which connected organizational, individual and psychological factors with CWSB. Results. According to the sensitivity analysis, safety knowledge, safety climate and psychological capital are the three most significant influencing factors for CWSB. A combined strategy that enhances safety knowledge, safety climate and communication competence simultaneously is the most effective option for strengthening CWSB. The validation and robustness of the network showed good accuracy for safety behavior judgment. Conclusion. This study proposes an alternative way to improve safety behavior by identifying its interactive causes and illustrates the importance of initiating systematic safety measures, which may help to mitigate the problem of safety plateau.

Psychological decision-making process of construction worker safety behavior: an agent-based simulation approach.

Objectives. Relationships between safety behavior and its antecedents have been widely studied. However, the psychological decision-making process of construction worker safety behavior (CWSB) is rarely examined from the systematic perspective. Thus, this study constructed the theoretical framework for the decision-making process of CWSB and systematically explored effects of individual factors (education, age and safety knowledge), organizational factors (safety climate and leader-member exchange [LMX]) and psychological factors (psychological capital [PsyCap] and communication competence [CommComp]) on the dynamic performance of CWSB. Methods. Data were collected from the literature and 536 construction workers in China. The theoretical model was tested with the agent-based simulation (ABS) technique. Results. High level of education, safety knowledge, safety climate, LMX, PsyCap and CommComp help to reduce unsafe behavior at the cut-off point. However, the age-safety relationship might present a U-shape, which denotes that reasonable age structure of construction worker groups may be an option for bettering safety performance. The results indicate that the psychological decision-making process of CWSB is not only the result of individual rational decision, but also the product of organizational and psychological impacts. Findings of this study shed lights on safety behavior management practices based on the psychological decision-making process of CWSB.

Relationship between leader-member exchange and construction worker safety behavior: the mediating role of communication competence.

Purpose. Leader-member exchange (LMX) has widely been adopted to explore its influence on job performance. However, most previous studies considered LMX as a unidimensional construct and neglected the effects of its subdimensions, thereby reducing its practicality to improve work performance. This study empirically tested the relationship between subdimensions of LMX and safety behaviors, while incorporating communication competence as a mediator. Method. Data were collected from Chinese construction industry workers. The theoretical model was built and checked using the structural equation modeling technique. Results. The affect and contribution dimensions of LMX positively associated with safety behaviors, while the loyalty and professional respect dimensions had negative and no relations with safety behaviors respectively. These findings demonstrate that a multidimensional view on LMX should be taken while checking its effects on safety behaviors. The affect and professional respect dimensions of LMX had indirect effects on safety participation via communication competence, which illustrate the mediating role of communication competence for construction safety. This study sheds lights on safety behavior research based on the theories of LMX. Enhancing the leadership and communication skills of safety staff and fostering a supportive safety atmosphere at sites are suggested to improve construction safety performance.

Impact of psychological capital on construction worker safety behavior: Communication competence as a mediator.

INTRODUCTION: Construction workers face a work environment of high risk and mental stress. Psychological capital (PsyCap) could influence employee's mental health and work performance. It would be helpful to determine whether PsyCap affects worker safety behavior. However, few studies empirically examined the impacts of the sub-dimensions of PsyCap on the safety behavior in construction settings, reducing the potential practicability of PsyCap to improve workplace safety performance. Thus, this study tested the relationship between sub-dimensions of PsyCap (self-efficacy, hope, resilience, optimism) and safety behaviors (safety compliance, safety participation), while the mediating role of communication competence was also explored. METHOD: Data were collected from 655 construction workers in China using a psychological capital questionnaire (PCQ). The theoretical model were tested with confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques. RESULTS: Results show that: (a) the self-efficacy dimension of PsyCap positively affected safety compliance and safety participation, while the resilience dimension positively impacted safety participation; (b) the hope dimension was not directly related to safety behaviors, while the optimism dimension negatively associated with safety participation; and (c) communication competence mediated the relationships between the hope and optimism dimensions of PsyCap and safety participation. CONCLUSIONS: A multidimensional perspective on PsyCap should be taken while examining its effects on safety behavior and the individual communication competence helps to enhance construction safety. Findings of this study shed lights on safety behavior promotion practices based on the multidimensional model. Initiating flexible psychological capital training and intervention, and strengthening communication skills of construction employees are suggested to improve safety performance in the construction industry.

Synthesis of spherical magnetic calcium modified chitosan micro-particles with excellent adsorption performance for anionic-cationic dyes.

In this present study, spherical magnetic calcium modified chitosan micro-particles (MG-Ca-CMPs) were synthesized by using embedding/cross-linking method and employed as an efficient adsorbent for Orange II (OII) in single system and coexisted with methylene blue (MB) in binary system. The obtained MG-Ca-CMPs were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectrometer, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction and magnetic property measurement system analyses, which demonstrated that the MG-Ca-CMPs possessed core-shell structure and excellent superparamagnetic property. The adsorption behaviors for OII in single system and coexisted with MB in binary system were systematically studied. Adsorption experiments data showed that MG-Ca-CMPs presented an excellent high affinity to acid dye OII (qmax = 962 mg·g-1) in single system, which followed the Langmuir isotherm model and pseudo-second order kinetics model. Interestingly, MB, hardly adsorbed in acidic solution, had effective adsorption performance (increased from 20 mg·g-1 to 350 mg·g-1) in binary system by MG-Ca-CMPs. This result was attributed to the synergistic effect caused by the positive and negative charge attraction between OII and MB, forming the positive-negative-positive adsorption mechanism. It is believed that MG-Ca-CMPs could be used as a potential adsorbent for the adsorption and separation of coexisting anionic-cationic dyes from dye wastewater.