Behavior-based safety uses observation and feedback to reduce workplace accidents. Proponents say it’s a scientific way to identify at-risk behaviors and change them. Opponents say it smacks of Big Brother and promotes blame.
The idea that behavioral change can lead to a safer workplace is nothing new. A behavioral approach has been around for most of a century. But it wasn’t until the late 1970s that the term “behavior-based safety” was first used by psychologist Dr. E. Scott Geller. His company, today known as Safety Performance Solutions, has helped spread behavior- and people-based principles throughout the industry.
“Doing things safely is the core of behavior-based safety,” says consultant and author Judy Agnew. Agnew is vice president of Aubrey Daniels International (ADI), an Atlanta-based consulting firm that helps businesses apply knowledge about changing behavior in safety and other areas. She leads the firm’s safety practice, and she’s also the author of the book Removing Obstacles to Safety.
Agnew identifies five essential stages in the behavioral approach to safety.
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Stage One: Pinpoint Behaviors
The first stage in ADI’s behavioral process is to identify, at every level of the organization, the critical behaviors that will prevent injuries and incidents. These behaviors are determined by analyzing accident reports and other data. After the list of target behaviors is narrowed down to a few for focused attention, these are printed onto a simple scorecard used by observers. Individual work groups have their own targeted behaviors.
The pinpointing effort should clearly describe the behavior so that it can be properly observed and measured. According to Agnew, “If you can’t take a picture of it or record it with a tape recorder, it probably isn’t a behavior.” The focus is on relatively small tasks or behaviors that can be observed in a few minutes or less.
Examples of safe behaviors to be targeted:
- Lifting with knees bent and back straight
- Honking forklift horns at intersections
- Putting on the proper gloves when mixing chemicals
- Putting on a face shield before grinding
Stage Two: Observation and Measurement
The ADI process differs from some other systems in that a small number of behaviors (maybe three) are targeted with frequent observations over a period of several weeks. Employees may be observed more than a dozen times a day by volunteer observers. The goal is to quickly establish new habits. Observers note their findings (whether the person used safe or at-risk behaviors and any obstacles) on the scorecard.
Agnew says the small number of target behaviors is a key to success. Changing behavior is challenging in any context. Trying to adopt many new habits at once and managing all the feedback is daunting.
In the ADI model, those being observed know exactly what behavior is being observed, but they don’t know the exact moment the observation will take place.
Key characteristics of the ADI observation process are:
- The observation is anonymous and never results in punishment.
- Frequent observations result in a large representative sample, which is used to track progress.
- The findings are collected by and summarized into percentages by co-workers. Management does not see the scorecards; they only see the percentage of time the group performs the behavior safely.
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Stage Three: Feedback
Agnew disagrees with those who believe that observation is the heart of a behavior-based safety process and is responsible for behavioral change. In fact, she believes it is only a vehicle for feedback and reinforcement, the two factors that ultimately alter behavior. This stage is where learning takes place.
Feedback changes during the process. At the beginning of a several-week behavior-change initiative, feedback would usually be longer and more conversational. Observer Ann might say to her co-worker John, “I noticed you weren’t wearing goggles. Is there a fogging issue or some other problem?”
Some days into the exercise, the feedback might be as simple as Ann’s thumbs-up gesture upon observing John wearing goggles. Or, if he is not wearing them, Ann might just point to her eyes to convey the message.
Because observations are conducted so frequently, it’s not practical to provide feedback on each occasion. Rather, Agnew suggests that it be offered:
- If a worker is in imminent danger;
- When the worker performs the safe behavior for the first time;
- When a worker has made recent improvements;
- When a worker has been struggling to change a habit;
- When the safe behavior is performed in a difficult situation; and
- If the observer notices barriers to the safe behavior.
Tomorrow, we’ll conclude this brief analysis of behavior-based safety with stages four and five.
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You can’t fix hazards you don’t know about. As we discussed in yesterday’s Advisor, regular work area inspections are a highly effective way to identify and correct hazards.