Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jn8rn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T05:03:48.390Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Psychosocial safety climate, safety compliance and safety participation: The mediating role of psychological distress

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2019

Muhammad Zeeshan Mirza Open the ORCID record for Muhammad Zeeshan Mirza [Opens in a new window] ,
Ahmad Shahrul Nizam Isha ,
Mumtaz Ali Memon ,
Sundas Azeem Open the ORCID record for Sundas Azeem [Opens in a new window]  and
Muhammad Zahid
Muhammad Zeeshan Mirza*
Affiliation:
Department of Engineering Management, College of E&ME, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan
Ahmad Shahrul Nizam Isha
Affiliation:
Department of Management and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Bandar Seri Iskandar, 31750 Tronoh, Perak, Malaysia
Mumtaz Ali Memon
Affiliation:
Air University School of Management, Air University, Islamabad, Pakistan
Sundas Azeem
Affiliation:
Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan
Muhammad Zahid
Affiliation:
Department of Management Sciences, City University of Science & Information Technology, Peshawar, Pakistan
*
*Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

We conceptualize that psychosocial safety climate (PSC) has a positive effect on employees' safety behavior by reducing their psychological distress. A high-level PSC environment reduces psychological distress by eliminating the employees' need for devoting psychological resources toward safety concerns. This preserves psychological resources to be invested in important behaviors i.e., safety compliance and participation. Data were collected from 190 production workers in the oil and gas industry across three states of Malaysia. Results showed strong support for our hypotheses. PSC was negatively linked with psychological distress. Psychological distress predicted safety compliance and participation and mediated the relationship between PSC and safety compliance/participation. Results suggest that in order to improve safety compliance and participation, management in safety-sensitive industries should pay attention to psychosocial factors in the work environment. The implications of these results for safety interventions and further research are discussed.

Keywords

psychosocial safety climatepsychological distresssafety compliancesafety participationMalaysia
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , March 2022 , pp. 363 - 378
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ali, H., Azimah Chew Abdullah, N., & Subramaniam, C. (2009). Management practice in safety culture and its influence on workplace injury. Disaster Prevention and Management, 18(5), 470–477. https://doi.org/10.1108/09653560911003660.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anderson, J. C., & Gerbing, D. W. (1988). Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychological Bulletin, 103(3), 411. JOUR.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andrews, G., Hall, W., Teesson, M., & Henderson, S. (1999). The mental health of Australians. Canberra: Mental Health Branch, Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care, Canberra, Australia.Google Scholar
Audenaert, M., & Decramer, A. (2016). When empowering leadership fosters creative performance: The role of problem-solving demands and creative personality. Journal of Management and Organization, 24, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2016.20Google Scholar
Bagozzi, R. P., Yi, Y., & Phillips, L. W. (1991). Assessing construct validity in organizational research. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36, 421–458.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bailey, T. S., Dollard, M., McLinton, S. S., & Richards, P. A. M. (2015). Psychosocial safety climate, psychosocial and physical factors in the aetiology of musculoskeletal disorder symptoms and workplace injury compensation claims. Work and Stress, 29(2), 190–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2015.1031855.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bailey, T. S., Dollard, M., & Richards, P. A. M. (2015). A national standard for Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC): PSC 41 as the benchmark for low risk of job strain and depressive symptoms. American Psychological Association, 20(1), 15–26.Google ScholarPubMed
Barling, J., Loughlin, C., & Kelloway, E. K. (2002). Development and test of a model linking safety-specific transformational leadership and occupational safety. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(3), 488–496. https://doi.org/10.1037//0021-9010.87.3.488.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brislin, R. W., Lonner, W. J., & Thorndike, R. M. (1973). Cross-cultural research methods. New York, NY: J. Wiley.Google Scholar
Bultmann, U., Kant, I. J., Van Den Brandt, P. A., & Kasl, S. V. (2002). Psychosocial work characteristics as risk factors for the onset of fatigue and psychological distress: Prospective results from the Maastricht Cohort Study. Psychological Medicine, 32(2), 333–345.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carlisle, K. N., & Parker, A. W. (2014). Psychological distress and pain reporting in Australian coal miners. Safety and Health at Work, 5(4), 203–209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shaw.2014.07.005.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chin, W. W. (2010). How to write up and report PLS analyses. In Vinzi, V. E., Chin, W. W., Henseler, J., & Wang, H. (Eds.), Handbook of partial least squares (pp. 655–690). Berlin, Germany: Springer.Google Scholar
Christian, M. S., Bradley, J. C., Wallace, J. C., & Burke, M. J. (2009). Workplace safety: A meta-analysis of the roles of person and situation factors. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(5), 1103–1127. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016172.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Clarke, S., & Cooper, C. L. (2004). Managing the risk of workplace stress. London, United Kingdom: Psychology Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. Hillsdale, United States of America: Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Dollard, M., Bailey, T., McLinton, S., Richards, P., Wes, M., Anne, T., & Stephanie, B. (2012a). The Australian Workplace Barometer: Report on Psychosocial Safety Climate and worker health in Australia.Google Scholar
Dollard, M., & Bakker, A. B. (2010). Psychosocial safety climate as a precursor to conducive work environments, psychological health problems, and employee engagement. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 83, 579–599. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317909X470690.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dollard, M., & McTernan, W. (2011). Psychosocial safety climate: A multilevel theory of work stress in the health and community service sector. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 20(4), 287–293. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2045796011000588CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dollard, M., Opie, T., Lenthall, S., Wakerman, J., Knight, S., Dunn, S., … MacLeod, M. (2012b). Psychosocial safety climate as an antecedent of work characteristics and psychological strain: A multilevel model. Work & Stress, 26(4), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2012.734154CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dollard, M., Tuckey, M. R., & Dormann, C. (2012). Psychosocial safety climate moderates the job demand-resource interaction in predicting workgroup distress. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 45, 694–704. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2011.09.042.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dunbar, E. (1993). The role of psychological stress and prior experience in the use of personal protective equipment. Journal of Safety Research, 24(3), 181–187. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-4375(93)90029-M.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Durand, P., & Marchand, A. (2005). Does work really cause distress? The contribution of occupational structure and work organization to the experience of psychological distress. Social Science and Medicine, 61, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.11.037Google Scholar
Enshassi, A., El-Rayyes, Y., & Alkilani, S. (2015). Job stress, job burnout and safety performance in the Palestinian construction industry. Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, 20(2), 170–187. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMPC-01-2015-0004.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. JOUR.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Geisser, S. (1975). The predictive sample reuse method with applications. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 70(350), 320–328.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goldberg, D. (1978). Manual of the general health questionnaire. United Kingdom: Nfer Nelson.Google Scholar
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2014). A Primer on Partial Least Squzres Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2016). A primer on partial least squzres structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Hall, G. B., Dollard, M., & Coward, J. (2010). Psychosocial safety climate: Development of the PSC-12. International Journal of Stress Management, 17(4), 353–383. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021320.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hobfoll, S. E. (1989). Conservation of resources: A new attempt at conceptualizing stress. American Psychologist, 44(3), 513.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hobfoll, S. E. (2001). The influence of culture, community, and the nested-self in the stress process: Advancing conservation of resources theory. Applied Psychology, 50(3), 337–421. https://doi.org/10.1111/1464-0597.00062.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Idris, M. A., & Dollard, M. (2011). Psychosocial safety climate, work conditions, and emotions in the workplace: A Malaysian population-based work stress study. International Journal of Stress Management, 18(4), 324–347. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024849.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Idris, M. A., Dollard, M., Coward, J., & Dormann, C. (2012). Psychosocial safety climate: Conceptual distinctiveness and effect on job demands and worker psychological health. Safety Science, 50(1), 19–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2011.06.005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Idris, M. A., Dollard, M., & Winefield, A. H. (2010). Lay theory explanations of occupational stress: The Malaysian context. Cross Cultural Management, 17(2), 135–153. https://doi.org/10.1108/13527601011038714.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Idris, M. A., Dollard, M., & Yulita, . (2014). Psychosocial safety climate, emotional demands, burnout, and depression: A longitudinal multilevel study in the Malaysian private sector. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19(3), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036599.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jacobsen, H. B., Caban-Martinez, A., Onyebeke, L. C., Sorensen, G., Dennerlein, J. T., & Reme, S. E. (2014). Construction workers struggle with a high prevalence of mental distress and this is associated with their pain and injuries. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 55(10), 1197–1204. https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0b013e31829c76b3.Construction.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaufmann, L., & Gaeckler, J. (2015). A structured review of partial least squares in supply chain management research. Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 21(4), 259–272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pursup.2015.04.005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Khosravi, Y., Asilian-Mahabadi, H., Hajizadeh, E., Hassanzadeh-Rangi, N., Bastani, H., & Behzadan, A. H. (2014). Factors influencing unsafe behaviors and accidents on construction sites: A review. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 20(1), 111–125. https://doi.org/10.1080/10803548.2014.11077023.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kock, N. (2014). Advanced mediating effects tests, multi-group analyses, and measurement model assessments in PLS-based SEM. International Journal of E-Collaboration, 10(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.4018/ijec.2014010101Google Scholar
Kock, N., & Lynn, G. (2012). Lateral collinearity and misleading results in variance-based SEM: An illustration and recommendations. Journal of the Association for Information System, 13(7), 546–580.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kumar, R., Chelliah, T. D., Chelliah, M. K., Binti, F., & Amin, M. (2012). An analysis on safety work culture in Malaysian manufacturing industry. BIOINFO Business Management, 2(1), 11–15.Google Scholar
Law, R., Dollard, M., Tuckey, M. R., & Dormann, C. (2011). Psychosocial safety climate as a lead indicator of workplace bullying and harassment, job resources, psychological health and employee engagement. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 43(5), 1782–1793. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2011.04.010CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Li, F., Jiang, L., Yao, X., & Li, Y. (2013). Job demands, job resources and safety outcomes: The roles of emotional exhaustion and safety compliance. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 51, 243–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2012.11.029.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lugah, V., Ganesh, B., Darus, A., Retneswari, M., Rosnawati, M. R., & Sujatha, D. (2010). Training of occupational safety and health: Knowledge among healthcare professionals in Malaysia. Singapore Medical Journal, 51(7), 586–592.Google ScholarPubMed
Mearns, K., & Hope, L. (2005). Health and well-being in the offshore environment: The management of personal health. United Kingdom: Health and Safety Executive.Google Scholar
Memon, M. A., Cheah, J.-H., Ramayah, T., Ting, H., & Chuah, F. (2018). Mediation analysis: Issues and recommendations. Journal of Applied Structural Equation Modeling, 2(1), 1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mirza, M. Z., & Isha, A. S. N. (2017). Context matters: A research agenda to move beyond conventional leadership-safety relationship. Safety Science, 98, 167–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.013CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mirza, M. Z., & Isha, A. S. N. (2018). Safety leadership and injuries: A study on the manufacturing sector of Pakistan, using safety climate as a mediator. Jinnah Business Review, 6(1), 1–6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Neal, A., & Griffin, M. (2002). Safety climate and safety behaviour. Australian Journal of Management, 27(1 suppl), 67–75. https://doi.org/10.1177/031289620202701S08.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Neal, A., & Griffin, M. (2006). A study of the lagged relationships among safety climate, safety motivation, safety behavior, and accidents at the individual and group levels. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(4), 946–953. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.4.946.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Neal, A., Griffin, M., & Hart, P. (2000). The impact of organizational climate on safety climate and individual behavior. Safety Science, 34(1–3), 99–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0925-7535(00)00008-4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Payton, A. R. (2009). Mental health, mental illness, and psychological distress: Same continuum or distinct phenomena? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 50, 213–227.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Podsakoff, P., MacKenzie, S., Lee, J. Y., & Podsakoff, N. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Podsakoff, P. M., & Organ, D. W. (1986). Self-reports in organizational research: Problems and prospects. Journal of Management, 12(4), 531–544.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Preacher, K. J., Rucker, D. D., & Hayes, A. F. (2007). Addressing moderated mediation hypotheses: Theory, methods, and prescriptions. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 42(1), 185–227. https://doi.org/10.1080/00273170701341316.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ramayah, T., Cheah, J., Chuah, F., Ting, H., & Memon, M. A. (2016). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 3.0: An updated and practical guide to statistical analysis. Singapore: Pearson.Google Scholar
Reinartz, W., Haenlein, M., & Henseler, J. (2009). An empirical comparison of the efficacy of covariance-based and variance-based SEM. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 26(4), 332–344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2009.08.001CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ridner, S. H. (2004). Psychological distress: Concept analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 45(5), 536–545. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2003.02938.x.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ringle, C. M., Wende, S., & Becker, J.-M. (2015). SmartPLS 3. Boenningstedt: SmartPLS GmbH. Retrieved from http://www.Smartpls.Com.Google Scholar
Shevlin, M., & Adamson, G. (2005). Alternative factor models and factorial invariance of the GHQ-12: A large sample analysis using confirmatory factor analysis. Psychological Assessment, 17(2), 231–236. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.17.2.231.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shirom, A., Westman, M., & Melamed, S. (1999). The effects of pay systems on blue-collar employees’ emotional distress: The mediating effects of objective and subjective work monotony. Journal of Composite Materials, 52(8), 1077–1097. https://doi.org/0803973233.Google Scholar
Siu, O. L., Kong, H., Phillips, D. R., & Leung, T. W. (2004). Safety climate and safety performance among construction workers in Hong Kong: The role of psychological strains as mediators. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 36(3), 359–366. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0001-4575(03)00016-2.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, T. D., Hughes, K., DeJoy, D. M., & Dyal, M.-A. (2018). Assessment of relationships between work stress, work-family conflict, burnout and firefighter safety behavior outcomes. Safety Science, 103, 287–292.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sullivan, G. M., & Feinn, R. (2012). Using effect size—or why the p value is not enough. Journal of Graduate Medical Education, 4(3), 279–282. https://doi.org/10.4300/JGME-D-12-00156.1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Turner, N., Hershcovis, M., Reich, T., & Totterdell, P. (2014). Work-family interference, psychological distress, and workplace injuries. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 87, 715–732.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Urbach, N., & Ahlemann, F. (2010). Structural equation modeling in information systems research using partial least squares. JITTA: Journal of Information Technology Theory and Application, 11(2), 5.Google Scholar
Yulita Idris, M. A., & Dollard, M. (2014). A multi-level study of psychosocial safety climate, challenge and hindrance demands, employee exhaustion, engagement and physical health. In Shimazu, A., Bin, R., Dollard, M., & Oakman, J. (Eds.), Psychosocial factors at work in the Asia Pacific (pp. 1–396). Switzerland: Springer International Publishing AG. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8975-2Google Scholar
YulitaIdris, M. A. Idris, M. A., & Dollard, M. (2016). Psychosocial safety climate: Past, present, and future research. In Shimazu, A., Bin, R., Dollard, M., & Oakman, J. (Eds.), Psychosocial factors at work in the Asia Pacific (pp. 89–134). Cham, United States of America: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yusoff, M. S. B., Rahim, A. F. A., & Yaacob, M. J. (2009). The sensitivity, specificity and reliability of the Malay version 12-items General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) in detecting distressed medical students. ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, 11(June), 1–8.Google Scholar
Zadow, A. J., Dollard, M., Mclinton, S. S., Lawrence, P., & Tuckey, M. R. (2017). Psychosocial safety climate, emotional exhaustion, and work injuries in healthcare workplaces. Stress and Health, 33(5), 558–569. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2740.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zheng, L., Xiang, H., Song, X., & Wang, Z. (2010). Nonfatal unintentional injuries and related factors Among male construction workers in Central China. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 53(January), 588–595. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajim.20833.Google ScholarPubMed
Zohar, D. (2010). Thirty years of safety climate research: Reflections and future directions. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 42(5), 1517–1522.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed