BEHAVIOUR BASED DOING WHAT WE DO

SAFETY GUIDE BETTER, SMARTER, SAFER

Our vision:
A country where worker safety, health and welfare
and the safe management of chemicals are central
to successful enterprise

Foreword

More and more we need to look at new closely linked to company culture and values
approaches to achieving safe and healthy and, most importantly, when it works, it is an
workplaces. We need to apply the learning excellent tool to improve safety performance in
from the many years of analyses of accidents the workplace.
and ill health because this will contribute to
In developing this guide we have been
future prevention strategies and activities.
privileged to have worked with a group of
Behaviour Based Safety (BBS) is an approach
people from companies that are committed to
that we believe can be applied successfully; it
the principles of BBS and on whom we can
is gaining more interest across industry sectors
count to promote the message. We hope that
globally and has the great advantage of
many more employers and employees become
needing the involvement of the individual
interested in the potential of the approaches set
employee, in addition of course, to employer
out and that we have added another useful and
commitment.
practical tool for improving safety and health
How often have we experienced situations in performance.
which an employee’s competence in a work
Our thanks go to all who have been of
process is assessed at the point that they leave
assistance, provided insights and shared their
the training room with the assumption that,
considerable expertise to help in the
once learned, the process will be applied
development of the guide.
correctly and safely?

This fails to take account of the many factors Mary Dorgan

that influence and reinforce learning and Assistant Chief Executive
behaviours. BBS addresses these factors. It is Health and Safety Authority
 CONTENTS

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

What is a behaviour based safety (BBS) approach? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Reinforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Reinforcement and Feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Goal Setting and Feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

What is Involved in a BBS Programme? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Leadership influence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Tips for successfully implementing a BBS programme in your workplace . . . . . . .14

Case study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Additions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Published in 2013 by the Health and Safety Authority, The Metropolitan Building, James Joyce Street, Dublin 1.
 Introduction

Various approaches have had reasonable success 2. Respectful, trusting, open communication
in reducing unsafe behaviours in the workplace. between management and employee groups
Some involve penalties; others involve about all aspects of safety in the workplace.
surveillance; others involve guidance, codes and 3. An open, feedback-rich culture among
procedures to follow; others still are supportive and employees, which enables employees to
training-oriented. consistently learn and grow.
4. A commitment to improving the profile of and
Some initiatives come from the employer, from the attitude to health and safety, and increased
social partner organisations, from state regulatory employee engagement in safety.
bodies, and some worthwhile initiatives come from
5. An emphasis on safe and unsafe behaviour;
individual employees’ own insights, ideas, training
not a sole dependence on lagging indicators
and development activities around health and
such as safety statistics.
safety.
6. A strong, consistent, timely reaction to the
discovery of unsafe acts, whether they result in
Most employers and employees in the area of
injury or not. Safety incidents are viewed as an
safety will agree that the ultimate aim of a safety
opportunity to learn and improve.
initiative is a “total safety culture”; however, this
concept is rarely defined. A total safety culture is a 7. Generally transparent and fair leadership from
culture in which: all, including managers, supervisors, and
owners.
a) individuals hold safety as a ‘value’ and not
8. Awareness amongst all staff of different ways
just a priority;
to consider or query human factors – how we
b) individuals take responsibility for the safety do what we do, and why.
of their co-workers in addition to
themselves; and

c) all level of employee are willing and able

to act on their sense of responsibility –
they can go ‘beyond the call of duty’
(Perdue, 2000).

The following are some requirements for any

approach to safety at work that brings about
noticeable, lasting results and contributes to a total
safety culture:
1. A strong management commitment towards
maintaining and improving behavioural safety,
witnessed in the regular acts of individuals at
management level.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 2

What is a Behaviour-Based Safety
(BBS) approach?

This guide is informed by the field of Behaviour- comprehensive health and safety programme;
Based Safety (BBS), which is often described it is a supplementary tool that will enhance the
as a bottom-up approach (frontline employees), effect of already existing practices, and will
with top-down support from safety leaders. allow for an objective measurement system.
A behaviour-based safety approach promotes
• Aims to understand causes of incidents and
interventions that are people-focused and often
near misses and correct them through the
incorporate one-to-one or group observations of
behaviour of relevant people. For example,
employees performing routine work tasks, setting
reducing hazards often requires behaviour
goals carefully and giving timely feedback on
change of managers and frontline workers,
safety-related behaviour, coaching and mentoring.
and equipment redesign involves behaviour
The initiatives have a proactive focus, encouraging
change of engineers.
individuals and their work groups to consider the
potential for incident involvement, (accidents) and “BBS is about everyone’s behaviour, not just
to assess their own behaviour as safe or unsafe the frontline” (Agnew & Ashworth, 2012)
always, no matter what.
BBS stems from the field of organisational
A BBS approach is one which: behaviour analysis. The focus in both
organisational behaviour analysis and BBS is
• Is based on solid principles about engaging,
behaviour. The overarching theme in behaviour
motivating, assisting, reinforcing, and
analysis and BBS is that behaviour is maintained
sustaining safe behaviours.
by what occurs after it (consequences).
• Takes a systematic approach, examining the
motivation underlying behaviours, in order to Many safety interventions in work settings focus on
increase safe behaviour. antecedents, or events that come before behaviour
• Is an ongoing effort; not ‘once-off’ provisions, that may evoke behaviour. For example, many
but a new way of working that the safety leader work settings rely heavily on training, safety signs,
must continually promote for sustainable, pep talks, toolbox talks, or pre-briefs. These can be
positive results. effective in activating behaviours initially, but it is
what occurs after our behaviour that ensures the
• Takes time to achieve; however, results can be
behaviour will occur time and time again.
observed immediately due to the nature of
measurement involved.
For example, a toolbox talk addressing
• Emphasises increasing safe behaviours rather correct manual handling techniques might
than focusing on length of time without injury. result in correct techniques on the day of
BBS programmes do not depend solely on the talk; however, over time employees
‘lagging indicators’ (after the fact), and instead will revert to old practices. This is because
shift the focus to ‘leading indicators’ nothing has occurred after their correct
behaviour to indicate that it is correct, or
(preventative).
that it has benefitted the individual or the
• Is not a substitute for an already existing organisation to be so safety-conscious.

3 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 What is a Behaviour-Based Safety (BBS)
approach?

Within BBS, behaviour is explained in terms of the ABC model (Antecedent, Behaviour, Consequence).

Antecedent Behaviour Consequence

A stimulus or event that Anything that we A stimulus or event that occurs after a
occurs before a behaviour can see an behaviour in time. This consequence
in time. This stimulus or individual do, or say. could increase or decrease behaviour in
event may result in the the future, depending on its reinforcing or
behaviour. Work examples punishing properties. Work examples
include goals, policies, include feedback, recognition, task
training, job aids, guides. completion, goal achievement, rewards.

Despite the fact that we rely heavily on antecedents, it is consequences that have the
greatest influence on behaviour.

When we examine an incident report and ask This guide will examine the process that occurs
questions around why a person behaved in a certain when a consequence leads to increases in
way, we tend to look at antecedents, or what behaviour, reinforcement, and how we can increase
occurred to ‘set off’ the behaviour. However, if we safe behaviour through reinforcement. The
examine the report with a view to consequences, we document will then outline steps to an effective
will gain a clearer picture of why the behaviour behavioural safety programme, and will conclude
occurred. For example, if an eye injury occurred and with a case study highlighting the positive effects of
the individual was not wearing PPE, we need to a BBS programme.
examine what were the consequences for wearing
the PPE (e.g., possible but not definite reduction of
injury) and what were the consequences for not
wearing PPE (e.g., immediate comfort, better vision
on the job).

- Examination of consequences can reveal

that in some instances it is actually more
preferable to not wear safety equipment.
It is the job of a safety leader to ensure
that it is more preferable to engage in
safe behaviour.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 4

 Reinforcement

Reinforcement occurs when a consequence that Negative Reinforcement

follows a behaviour makes it more likely that the
behaviour will occur again in the future. A lot of what we do is to avoid something, so
Therefore, a reinforcing consequence is one that we behave to get rid of the thing we don’t want
causes behaviour to occur more frequently. – this is negative reinforcement.

- For example, the behaviour of putting

For example, if you wear PPE to avoid a fine
money in a snack vending machine and pressing
(that might occur for not wearing PPE), this is
a button has the consequence of the chosen
you working under negative reinforcement.
food item being distributed. The presentation
Your ‘wearing PPE’ behaviour has increased in
of the food item functions as reinforcement for
order to avoid a bad situation.
putting the money in and pressing the button.
If the person using the vending machine actually
Doing something to avoid punishment or
wanted the food item then they will repeat this
aversive conditions will not inspire great or
behaviour in the future (because it was
creative performance. We get by, but we are
successfully accomplished).
not motivated to improve – we are motivated
Essentially, everything we do changes our by fear! Working because we ‘have to’ will get
environment in some way (consequences). sufficient performance, but working because
When the environment changes in a way that we ‘want to’ will mean we get maximum
we like, then we will repeat the behaviour that performance (Daniels, 2000).
led to the change (reinforcement).

We can increase performance through negative and In many organisations, work is typically carried out
positive reinforcement. under negative reinforcement conditions (i.e.
because we ‘have to’). This results in adequate
• Negative simply means taking away performance; employees do enough to satisfy a
something (e.g., closing a window removes compliance standard, but they do not go that extra
a cold breeze), and mile. On the other hand, working under positive
• Positive means adding something (e.g., reinforcement conditions can result in employees
turning on a light switch results in the going above and beyond their job duties, and
addition of light). employees will take personal account for safety. If
employees work under positive reinforcement
conditions (i.e. because they ‘want to’), then they
will be: 1) working towards something good (as
opposed to avoiding a negative), 2) motivated to
work, which might result in 3) creative thinking,
employing new strategies, successful decision
making, seeking more responsibility.

5 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Reinforcement

Positive Reinforcement When we talk about reinforcement, we refer to the

consequence that increases behaviour as a
In work settings it is less common to see reinforcer.
individuals working under positive reinforcement
• A reinforcer is anything that is added following a
conditions; however, it is preferable. Positive
behaviour that increases that behaviour in the
reinforcement leads to durable behaviour
future.
change, and happier employees!
• This could be recognition, praise, money, or
For example, if you wear PPE because you feel anything at all that is provided after our
like you are contributing to safety in your behaviour.
organisation (by taking personal control of • As a basic example, when two people are
safety), you will be more likely to wear PPE having a conversation, they are reinforcing each
when your boss is not present, in situations in others ‘conversation’ behaviour. If one person
which it is not mandatory, and you may well stopped talking, then reinforcement would no
begin to exhibit other safe behaviours in longer be present and the conversation would
addition to this, voluntarily. cease. Reinforcers are around us in our
environment and maintain our behaviours all of
Doing something that results in positive the time.
reinforcement promotes strong, durable
• A successful leader will identify their employees
behaviour change, in addition to other new
reinforcers through observing what motivates
positive behaviours.
their employees, and by trying out potential
reinforcers, for example, increasing positive
feedback to see if that increases safe behaviour.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 6

Reinforcement and Feedback

Feedback is information given to an individual or a feedback, and for the listener to receive the
group about their behaviour and its impact feedback. If a person is habituated to receiving
(Braksick, 2007), and is one of the most important positive feedback, when he/she receives
communication tools in helping people stay constructive feedback indicating that a change in
healthy and safe. Feedback can take many shapes behaviour is required, the person will make the
and forms, and generally in a work setting feedback changes, particularly if a goal is set around the new
is a combination of positive and constructive behaviour. We often ‘do’ incorrect things because
information. we haven’t been shown how to do the correct
things.
A feedback-rich environment enhances both When delivering constructive feedback, remember:
communication and motivation. Positive feedback
can act as a consequence that increases behaviour - Constructive feedback should be used as a tool
(reinforcement). Feedback lets us know that we are to teach and learn the correct way to complete a
performing the correct behaviours – positive task or ‘do’ a behaviour.
feedback should be specific in pinpointing the exact
- It should be viewed as a training mechanism,
behaviours that warrant positive praise. For
and if delivered correctly, employees should
example, instead of saying “nice work Bill”, saying
want to receive constructive feedback.
“Bill, your housekeeping skills are so impressive.
My path is always clear walking through your
workspace”, will convey exactly to Bill what he has Using feedback in conjunction with goal setting
done to impress the person delivering the feedback. provides a clear objective for the individual, so a
If individuals receive feedback telling them that they combination of goal setting and frequent feedback
are doing ‘the right thing’, then they will most likely produces maximal behaviour change.
increase that behaviour, provided the feedback is
specific and genuine.

Sometimes it is necessary to deliver constructive

feedback. Constructive feedback refers to when
clear non judgmental instructions are given to the
individual on what behaviours they need to change
to reach the desired behaviours’. If positive
feedback is delivered on a ratio of 5:1 to
constructive feedback, then it will be easier
for the communicator to deliver the constructive

7 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Goal Setting and Feedback

Research into motivation and behaviour change • Then choose a goal for that activity, e.g. ‘always
tells us that setting goals leads to better results and travel at or below the recommended speed when
that ‘what gets measured gets done’. A person who operating a forklift truck’.
is encouraged to get sixty letters typed in a day is
• Agree that goal with those using the machinery
far more likely to succeed than a person who is told
and those in that vicinity.
to ‘do their best’. Likewise, if there is any room for
ambiguous interpretation, it is crucial to elaborate, • Agree upon a measurement system to determine
e.g., rather than saying ‘Overalls should be worn progress towards the goal.
correctly’, say, ‘Overalls should be done up to the
neck with sleeves outside gauntlet gloves’. It is In order for a goal to be ‘reasonable’, those
better to be specific than vague, to aim higher than performing the behaviour must agree, to some
lower and to get participation and engagement from extent, that it is reasonable. They may believe it to
the start. Safety should always be at the core of be too high, or too hard, but they must, at a basic
goal setting: saying ‘Do it by Friday but do it safely’ level, accept that it is do-able and that they can
rather than ‘Do it safely but do it by Friday’ puts the achieve it. In order for this to occur, a discussion
emphasis on safety as the most important factor, must take place to ensure that the goal chosen is a
not the deadline. worthwhile one. Apathy and cynicism result when
silly or meaningless goals are chosen. So, the first
Most research shows that when goal setting is phase is to agree a goal activity and then set a
matched with feedback in a systematic way, the difficult, but do-able, standard to be met, a time
target behaviour change is even more likely to frame in which to meet that target, and a way to
occur. When setting goals, managers, supervisors, measure goal-directed behaviour. For complex
parents, teachers and bosses often forget the goals, set targets in between so that the effort is
delivery of feedback. If a person sets out to learn staggered incrementally. Ensure that people know
new methods or systems, to reach a target, to strive the most efficient way to complete the task, that the
to improve or re-skill in some way, they need new goal is applied fairly, and that everyone knows
feedback. Setting a goal acts as an antecedent that what they have to do and by what deadline.
specifies what goal-directed behaviour should
occur, and feedback acts as a reinforcer – the goal
sets off the behaviour and the feedback reinforces
the behaviour. Behaviour-based safety interventions
reinforce safe behaviour via one-to-one, group and
site-wide feedback.

Goal setting means simply what it says:

• Choose a goal relating to an activity - on a

warehouse floor, ‘use of machinery’ could be the
target activity.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 8

What is Involved in a BBS Programme?

Having explored reinforcement, feedback and goal 3. A critical checklist is developed

setting, the next section of this guide will briefly The checklist is comprised of the list of safe
outline the steps to a BBS intervention. It is behaviours identified in the above step. The
recommended that the reference section at the end list can be shortened according to importance
of the document be consulted prior to of safety, frequency of occurrence,
implementation of a BBS programme. observability and overlap with other items on
the list. The list should be no more than 1
sheet of paper (1 side). It helps to have
1. A design team is created definitions for everything that is being
The most effective way to run a BBS measured on the back of the checklist – try
programme is to initially set up a design team. not to leave anything up to subjective
The design team should consist of interpretation. The best way to know if the
management and frontline employees, and checklist is useable is to observe an employee
each member of the team should have heard working, and see if all categories on the list
about BBS and volunteer to be on the team. can be filled out in an observation. The list will
This team will design the BBS system, need to be revised a number of times before it
however all employees will be involved in can be considered ready-to-use.
implementation.
4. Ensure that you have a
2. Target behaviours are chosen from measurement system
safety incidents, near miss reporting, The measurement system for an observation
safety audits and observation programme is simply a frequency count of
Firstly, the design team picks targeted areas/ safe and risk behaviours during an
tasks. The team can use data that the site observation. Note of caution: measuring is
already has; results of safety audits, safety an antecedent, and we need a
data, information from safety meetings and consequence in place to strengthen the
informal interviews with staff (from the past 5 behaviour under measurement. When
years if possible). This will provide a wealth of measurement is used effectively, the leader
information around areas in need of can create an environment in which people
improvement. The team determine what would actually want to be measured. This can
have prevented the reported injuries; if it is not happen when positive consequences are
immediately obvious the team use methods delivered based on the behaviour change that
like discussing how increased situation is observed through measurement. When
awareness might have affected the situation. employees receive specific, positive feedback
From this analysis, the team will identify about the results, then they will see a benefit,
critical safe behaviours for an observation aim higher, and want to be measured.
checklist.

9 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 What is Involved in a BBS Programme?

5. Behavioural observations are should respond with positive feedback about

carried out any improvements, and not respond
Consider who will conduct the observations. negatively to low numbers on graphs. Instead,
Data shows that the most beneficial system is they should encourage objective problem
to have all employees involved in the solving.
observation process. Behavioural
observations increase safety behaviours of 7. Make use of the data
the observed but also the observer, so You now have valuable data that you can use
encouraging employees to conduct to inform you on process changes. Build a
observations on each other will benefit all review of the data into existing meetings and
employees. The team and all employees will ensure that all staff are informed of any
need to decide how often observations will be changes made based on the data, and that
conducted. Will they occur across or within they know it was because of their contribution
departments? Will a single task or employee (as a group - no names are recorded).
be observed, or a work area? Will you include
contractors? – if so, try to recruit them at the 8. Set improvement goals
design phase. Employees should be encouraged to
participate in this, and the goals should be
6. Feedback is delivered realistic and based on the current data. Set
The process requires careful training of short goals and ensure that each employee
employees. The observer should summarise knows what behaviour or process they need
significant positive safety behaviours that to work on to reach the goal (see goal setting
were observed and then one or two areas that section of this guide). Remember to focus on
require change. The feedback should be the safety process itself and not the results –
delivered as soon as possible after the attempting to manage results will ruin the
observation (unless this poses a risk). integrity of the programme. Instead of setting
Describe the behaviour observed, discuss goals to increase or decrease results, set
the potential impact and listen to the goals around the behaviours that lead to
observee – this formula can be used for both these results (e.g., increase wearing of safety
positive and corrective feedback. In addition to goggles from 80% to 100%).
individual feedback by the observer, overall
site feedback should be delivered. The leader
should discuss the results of the observations
(categorically, not personally) at safety Behavioural observations are an opportunity to
meetings, while also providing visual deliver both positive and constructive feedback. It is
feedback. The easiest and most effective way a feedback session structured around observation
to do this is through creation of a graph. of a particular behaviour or a set of behaviours, and
Visual feedback helps us to see how we are a feedback-rich environment is one in which
doing and also helps us to set goals. Leaders everybody is learning. An effective observation
process offers:

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 10

What is Involved in a BBS Programme?

- Feedback on the effectiveness of the safety • Improved safety practices of observers and
programme observees;

- Social consequences for safety • Increased situation awareness;

- A baseline for setting improvement goals • Provides feedback on the effectiveness of

safety processes;
- Practice in observing and discussing safe
behaviour • Provides a baseline to set improvement
goals;

There are numerous benefits of using a behavioural • Provides a forum for recognition of positive
observation approach, and it is recommended that behaviours (McSween, 2003).
the reader consult the reference section of this
guide for examples of successful interventions.
Some notable benefits of behavioural observations
are:

11 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Leadership influence

BBS programmes are typically driven by frontline Leaders play a very important role in the safety
employees; however, supervisors and managers process. Leadership should not consist of auditing a
play an integral role in promoting, modelling and performer but rather listening to the performer and
reinforcing the programme. Without strong safety asking questions, such as “are there any parts of
leaders, a BBS programme will suffer, and the your job that you don’t see the need to do?”.
expected positive results may not be observed. The leader’s job is to listen and learn from their
Managers and supervisors affect the work group in employee – one of the best ways you can build
many ways: relationships is to let somebody teach you
(Uhl, 2012).
1. Their own behaviour acts as a model for
those reporting to them. With regard to the specific areas of BBS addressed
2. Their attitudes, witnessed in what they say in the current document, the leader plays particular
formally and informally, for instance in the important and essential parts in the process:
canteen as well as at the start of a shift in front
of senior managers, make their mark. 1. ABC model
3. The most important effect comes from what It is the leader’s responsibility to identify and
the supervisors really do and think, not what communicate antecedents and consequences to
they say they do and think. safe and unsafe behaviour. If a leader can
4. They behave ‘on behalf of’ large groups of identify why an unsafe act is occurring, and what
employees at times where time is short or is maintaining the unsafe behaviour, then the
energy reduced. For instance, if employees leader is in a position to change conditions to
are tired, their behaviour very much ensure that the alternative safe behaviour
depends on what the supervisor does, says results in more preferable consequences.
and accepts as reasonable from their group Additionally, a strong leader will teach his/her
of reportees. employees to conduct ABC analyses so that all
employees can identify consequences to safe
Safety is not flexible, yet supervisors and managers and unsafe behaviour, and all can contribute
have to be. This is one difficulty with keeping a positively to behaviour change.
stringent, consistent approach to safety: letting
someone do something unsafely even once 2. Reinforcement
diminishes every other attempt to do it properly. When consequences have been identified, a
Leaders and managers can show flexibility in other strong leader will assess whether reinforcement
matters, but not safety. Remember, there are two can be implemented for the desired safe
main requirements for employees: behaviours. That is, a leader will boost social
reinforcement for safe behaviours and assess
• Participation and engagement on safety whether or not this increases the safe behaviour.
issues so that all employees are informed A strong leader will listen to his/her employees
and can debate the issues. to see what they find important. For example, if
• Total compliance with behaviours agreed to an employee is discussing how he/she came up
most effectively reduce errors, all the time. with a particular initiative, then a clever leader

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 12

Leadership influence

can surmise that the employee wants follow-up with these goals and provide timely
recognition for his input. If one-to-one feedback to employees on their progress
recognition is not preferable to an employee, towards the goal, and recognise achievements.
then a leader will find ways of ascertaining what
motivates that employee (e.g., ask, observe). 5. Behavioural Observations
A successful observation programme typically
3. Feedback involves employees conducting observations on
It is the leader’s responsibility to deliver frequent each other; however the safety leader needs to
feedback when he/she observes safe behaviour. champion the process. The leader should be
The leader leads a feedback-rich environment; involved at the design stage, and should provide
the leader doesn’t just deliver the feedback, but continuous feedback on the success of the
also encourages staff to deliver feedback to programme. The leader will also be responsible
each other. A strong leader can increase overall for any environmental or procedural changes
communication and motivation of a site by that result from observations – there are often
simply increasing positive feedback, provided safety changes needed that employees do not
the feedback is specific and genuine. have the authority to carry out (e.g., hazard
removal).
4. Goal Setting
The leader can initiate goal setting with his/her This list of leader responsibilities is not exhaustive,
staff, which can lead to staff setting their own and the leader plays a continuous role in promoting
goals. That is, the leader can begin a goal safety improvements at his/her worksite. Safety
setting culture, but as staff perform behavioural leaders are the role-models for personal safety, and
observations on each other, they will begin to set employees will look to strong leaders to see how
their own goals. The leader can initiate overall they should behave at work – safety leaders need to
site goals based on the group data from “walk the talk”.
behavioural observations. A strong leader will

13 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Tips for successfully implementing a BBS
programme in your workplace

• Set clear and realistic goals: what do you want to achieve? How will you

know that you have achieved it?

• Pilot the intervention in a small section or department of the organisation

first – pick an easy area where people are accessible, positive and in a

stable environment.

• Contact similar companies or trade associations to discuss their

interventions and experiences.

• Listen to your employees and use the process to improve communication.

• Involve employees early in the choice of programme to increase the

likelihood of employee investment and participation, and so that they feel a

sense of ownership.

• Tailor the language, style and branding of the programme to your

organisation. Market it to the employees just as any product or service is

marketed to them.

• Focus on the real root causes of errors and accidents in the workplace: not

just actions, but motivations or consequences behind the actions.

• Always emphasise that safety is not a priority, which can change according

to external factors, but a core value which must be considered in every

action and task that an employee undertakes.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 14

Case study

Case Study: Behavioural Intervention Over Time Step 1

All employees were informed of the intervention, the
In 2010, Myers, McSween, Medina, Rost and Alvero rationale behind the intervention and the goals of
published an article providing results from a 20-year the intervention. A thorough safety assessment was
BBS intervention, highlighting the success of the conducted to ascertain past interventions, get input
programme and the durability of behaviour change from employees, identify high risk areas and
over time. activities, and identify training needs.

Step 2
A design team was created consisting of 10
employees who volunteered to take part, an area
manager and a committee leader. The design team
were trained on behaviour analysis and the
behavioural safety process over a 3-day workshop.

Step 3
The design team identified basic safety values(e.g.,
teamwork, employee empowerment), and then
pinpointed practices and behaviours that would be
indicative of those values. Then the team created a
safety process for each unit of the plant, stating the
values and practices for each process.

Step 4
The design team (along with behavioural
consultants) trained all employees on behavioural
observation techniques and the rationale for using
observation to measure safe behaviour. Employees
practiced observation and delivery of feedback.
The intervention took place in an oil refinery in which
plant managers had expressed a clear interest in Step 5
reducing injuries and improving the safety culture. Employees were asked to complete at least two
An initial assessment of the previous 3 years of peer observations per month using checklists that
incident reports revealed that unsafe employee listed relevant safe behaviours. The design team
acts contributed to 96% of injuries. The intervention reviewed the observations monthly, graphed the
was initially introduced to one area of the refinery as data, and reviewed the data in monthly safety
this area showed the highest risk and the most past meetings. The data taken were frequency of
injuries. The following steps provide a brief observations, participation, and types of safety
description of the intervention: concerns from the observations.

15 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Case study

Step 6 Main lessons:

Employees received monthly feedback; both verbal • Employees and management expressed an
and visual. Lists of employee suggestions and interest in improving safety prior to
actions taken were also posted. Rewards were implementation – this is essential for
delivered in the form of meals or small celebrations voluntary participation.
if the team met their monthly goals (% increase from
the previous month), and managers were always • Provide some information highlighting the
present for these celebrations. benefits of changing a behaviour.

Step 7 • Train all employees on the intervention so

Following implementation in the initial area of the that all can take part and contribute to
plant, the programme was rolled out plant-wide. behaviour change.

Results: • Celebrate success – this does not need to

Although direct observation data was taken and be tangible rewards; it could be
used to drive the intervention, injury data was acknowledgement of achievement.
consulted to view the overall success of the
programme. Following intervention in the initial area • Provide verbal and visual feedback. Visual
of the plant, 24 months passed before the first feedback serves as a reminder of our
recordable incident (this was unheard of in that area success, and provides a forum to track
of the plant). progress.

Overall the mean incidence rate in the refinery

reduced from an average of 4 per year prior to the
BBS programme, to an average of under 1 per year
following introduction of the programme (lower than
the industry average). Additionally, over the years,
participation in the programme remained above
60% indicating a high level of employee
engagement in safety.

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 16

Additions

Any intervention in any workplace for any purpose – The individual approach is more time-consuming
whether it is a BBS approach or not – should look at and generally requires more resources, but can be
the organisation from a few standpoints. Firstly, as a utilised well if a sectional approach is adopted, i.e.
whole, the organisational culture should be hosting a focus group with ten per cent of the
assessed: how are things generally done in that employee group, and getting their views and
organisation? Does the organisational culture reflect attitudes to an item or several items concerning their
safety-related issues or does it bypass them? safety. These are standard practice in a lot of
organisations and can be used effectively in
Secondly, safety culture/climate should be conjunction with a BBS programme.
assessed with a view to basing a BBS intervention Finally, management and organisational factors
on improving a future assessment. That is, a safety have a strong influence on accidents and incidents,
culture assessment could be taken before a BBS either directly or through their impact on the
intervention, and then again after the intervention behaviours of employees. Employees at all levels of
has been in place for a period of time. The feedback an organisation should champion a behaviour-based
from this will enhance the effects of the BBS safety approach, and express a genuine interest in
programme, and will add a sort of ‘validity’ in the keeping employees healthy and safe.
eyes of the employees working safely. A safety
culture refers to how attitudes and beliefs about In sum, an effective behaviour-based safety
safety – long term (culture) and more recent programme should contain the following:
(climate) – have come about, and what they are in
the organisation. There are various ways to assess 1. Engagement from both employees and
safety culture or climate, with the survey approach management.
being a very popular method in recent years. This
2. Clear, concise definitions of behaviours
method looks at the overall group of employees and
targeted for change.
presents individual responses to questions in the
aggregate, so that the result is a summary-type 3. These targeted behaviours are chosen from
profile of the average employee. There is also the past incident reports, safety assessments,
individual approach. Whilst the survey approach observation, and near miss data.
would give an overview, an individual approach
might look to one group – say, roofers on a building 4. An observation process.
site – and run a focus group: a meeting of a 5. A feedback process.
specified group of employees, for a specific
purpose, in confidence, whose individual views will 6. Target behaviours for employees,
be prioritised and become the focus of attention for supervisors and managers to improve,
follow-up actions. The purpose of this is to ascertain including measurement and feedback.
what safety-related or job-specific behaviours are
7. A process for identifying and remediating
‘the norm’ and what are unacceptable within that
hazards (Agnew & Ashworth, 2012).
subgroup.

17 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 References

Agnew, J., & Ashworth, C. (2012). Behavior-based safety: Setting the record straight. Aubery Daniels
International Inc. http://aubreydaniels.com/pmezine/behavior-based-safety-setting-record-straight

Braksick, L.W. (2007). Unlock Behaviour, Unleash Profits. McGraw-Hill: New York.

Daniels, A.C. (2000). Bringing out the Best in People. McGraw-Hill: New York.

McSween, T.E. (2003). The Values-Based Safety Process. John Wiley & Sons: New Jersey.

Myers, W.V. , McSween, T.E., Medina, R.E., Rost, K., and Alvero, A.M. (2010). The implementation and
maintenance of a behavioral safety process in a petroleum refinery. Journal of Organizational
Behavior Management, 30, 285-307.

Ludwig, T.D., Biggs, J., Wagner, S, & Geller, E.S. (2002). Using Public Feedback and Competitive Rewards
to Increase the Safe Driving of Pizza Deliverers. Journal of Organisational Behaviour Management,
21(4), 75-104.

Perdue, S. (2000). Beyond observation and feedback: Integrating behavioural safety principles into other
safety management systems. Proceedings of the 2000 American Society of Professional Engineers
(ASSE) Conference and Exposition.

Uhl, D. (2012). Turn up to learn: Leasership in high-hazard industries. Aubery Daniels International Inc.
http://aubreydaniels.com/pmezine/turn-learn-leadership-high-hazard-industries

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 18

References

Successful BBS interventions (cited in Agnew & Ashworth, 2012)

Hermann, J.A., Ibarra, G.V., and Hopkins, B.L. (2010). A safety program that integrated behavior-based
safety and traditional safety methods and its effect on injury rates of manufacturing workers. Journal
of Organizational Behavior Management, 30(1), 6-25.

Krause, T.R., Seymour, K.J., and Sloat, K.C.M. (1999) Long-term evaluation of a behavior based method for
improving safety performance: A meta-analysis of 73 interrupted time-series replications. Safety
Science 32, 1-18.

Myers, W.V. , McSween, T.E., Medina, R.E., Rost, K., and Alvero, A.M. (2010). The implementation and
maintenance of a behavioral safety process in a petroleum refinery. Journal of Organizational
Behavior Management, 30, 285-307.

Smith, S. and Walter, L. (October 2011). EuroKera North America is Named an America’s Safest Company
Winner. EHS Today http://ehstoday.com/mag/asc-eurokera/.

US Department of Energy, “Department of Energy Behavior-Based Safety Process; Volume 1: Summary of

Behavior Based Safety.” DOE Handbook (2002). http://www.oshatrain.org/pdf/doebbs.pdf.

Examples of BBS programme overviews:

Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA). Best Practice for Behaviour Based Safety.
http://www.coaa.ab.ca/Portals/0/Downloads/BP%20Safety/Behavioural-BP.pdf

Process Industries Safety Management (PRISM) Thematic Network on Human Factors Behavioural Safety
Application Guide.
http://www.epsc.org/data/files/PRISM/JOMCs_finalised_version_of_Application_Guide.pdf

TexasSafe: A Guide to Total Safety Culture. www.texasmutual.com/safety/cd/bbs.doc

US Department of Energy, “Department of Energy Behavior-Based Safety Process; Volume 1: Summary of

Behavior Based Safety.” DOE Handbook (2002). http://www.oshatrain.org/pdf/doebbs.pdf.

19 Behaviour Based Safety Guide

 Notes

Behaviour Based Safety Guide 20

 A country where
worker safety, health
and welfare and
the safe management
of chemicals are
central to successful
enterprise

ISBN NO. 978-1-84496-175-7 HSA0392