Another question we may need to ask is: Does everyone have a safety attitude? One way of describing attitude could be to say that it is simply the way we think about things, our values and beliefs. So a safety attitude is the way we think about safety, and on top of that I believe it varies between individuals and that there are different aspects to our safety attitude that also varies between people. So yes, I believe that everyone does have a safety attitude.

OK, back to the question then, can we teach people to have a higher safety attitude? Well, on the surface of it, no, because that question implies that we are changing them, but what if we could create a teaching experience that prompted people to change their own attitude towards safety? Would that equal teaching people to have a higher safety attitude? I reckon it would.

What are some of the safety attitudes?

If we accept that people have a safety attitude and that it varies between individuals, have a think about some of these specific attitudes and whether workers you know may differ on (have different ways of thinking about) them:

• Safety control- to what extent do I believe I am in control of my own safety;
• Risk avoidance- what level and types of risk will I accept for myself; 
• Driver attitude- how committed am I to being a safe and professional driver and/or operator of mobile plant; 
• Stress tolerance- my ability to handle and cope with daily stressors; and 
• Quality orientation- How willing am I to take responsibility for the work I do and to continuous improvement.

What is the link between attitude and behaviour?

While this is all very interesting to think about attitudes, how does it relate to day to day occupational health and safety (OHS), or specifically our safety behaviours? Because it is really our behaviour that we are concerned with in that if workers behave in a safer manner we will have fewer (hopefully no) incidents.

From a psychological view, the link is clear. Our behaviour is determined by our thinking (attitude). A higher safety attitude will lead to better safety behaviour. Better safety related choices. Fewer injuries, illnesses and fatalities.

So the link between safety behaviour and OHS incidents has been recognised for a while now, and that is why we have so many behavioural safety programs not in place. However there can be some limitations to these efforts. Consider the road safety campaign. The government clearly states the accepted behaviour while driving (speeding, drinking, tail gaiting etc), and then they observe our behaviour and let us know if we are not following it.

This is similar to most workplace based programs where desired behaviours are stated (eyes of hands, safe body movements etc), and then we are observed while working. The theory is that over time we will adopt the safe behaviours as the normal way of being. They will become part of our normal way of working. We will have the attitude that those safe behaviours are the right behaviours, and so we will choose to apply them.

However there can be limitations when the observation component is removed before we have adopted the behaviour as our normal attitude. Imagine the roads if the government stopped monitoring how we drive? No doubt there are many people who would continue their safe driving habits. However there may be quite a few who would adopt their own version of safe driving behaviours.

We want a commitment attitude, not a compliance attitude

So in the end what we want is a combination of approaches to improving OHS. Behavioural safety is an important part of the process because it gives us real time data about actual behaviours. It is often a much more realistic picture of safety performance than looking at LTIFR.

Focussing on safety attitudes then further enhances the process. It deals with the fundamental decision making that underpins behaviour. When a worker has a higher safety attitude they behave safely because they want to, not because they are being told to. They adopt a commitment attitude, not a compliance attitude.

So in answer to our first question, it is possible to provide a teaching process that allows a person to raise their safety attitude. These programs typically combine assessment, coaching, workshop and self directed learning strategies over a period of time. They are not as simple as attending a weekend workshop, because we are working at the level of values and beliefs, but they can be very effective in reducing OHS incidents in the workplace.