A Hierarchical Factor Analysis of a Safety Culture Survey

A positive safety culture can lead to a decrease in organizational injury and disaster statistics as well as the costs associated from those injuries. A safety culture literature review suggested there were some constructs that needed expansion and inclusion within safety culture measurements. A 92-item survey was constructed by subject matter experts based on their knowledge and literature. The resulting survey was administered to 25,574 workers across five multinational organizations in five different industries. The data set was split in half before exploratory and hierarchical confirmatory factor analyses were conducted. These analyses revealed Safety Culture as a second-order latent variable with four first-order factors consisting of Management Concern, Personal Responsibility for Safety, Peer Support for Safety, and Safety Management Systems. Additionally, twelve indicators were found: three on Management Concern, three on Personal Responsibility, two on Peer Support, and four on Safety Management Systems. The resulting safety culture model addresses gaps in the literature by pinpointing core factors which make up a safety culture.