The relationship between information quality and construction safety

Attah, A (2019) The relationship between information quality and construction safety. PhD thesis, Walden University, USA.

Abstract

Fatal occupational injury is a construction and management problem in the United States. Fatality rates among specialty trade contractors made up the largest percent of fatalities in construction at 62% per year. The purpose of this nonexperimental study was to examine the relationship between the quality of information in construction safety plans and construction safety among specialty trade contractors. The theoretical foundations for the study were Petersen's accident/incident theory and work systems theory. The key research question was to examine the relationship between information quality and construction safety among specialty trade contractors. A survey with closed-ended questions was used to collect primary data from a self-selection sample of 134 specialty trade contractors in the United States. Spearman rank correlation coefficient (rs) was used to measure the strength of the relationship between information quality and construction safety. Results indicated that the quality of information in construction safety plans (measured by the relevance, accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of information) did not have any statistically significant relationships with construction safety among U.S. specialty trade contractors. Further research is needed to understand if the variables used in this study are relevant predictors for construction safety. This study connects with positive social change by bringing into focus quality information systems research required to improve safety among U.S. specialty trade contractors and provide safety professionals a direction for continuous safety improvement in the U.S. construction industry, thus benefitting construction stake holders.

Item Type: Thesis (Doctoral)
Thesis advisor: Gould, D
Uncontrolled Keywords: accuracy; systems theory; construction safety; foundations; injury; information system; safety; professional; United States; experiment
Index terms: construction industry, foundations, fatalities, experiment, accuracy, survey, injury, United States, trade contractor, systems theory, information system, construction safety
Subjects: theoretical framing, structural engineering, Geography, practitioner, health risk and incident analysis, professional development, health conditions and diseases, information systems, environmental health, industry analysis, data collection methods
Topics: Roles and Professions, Information Management, Research Practice, Digital Applications, Sustainability, Engineering Principles, Geographical Context, Health and Safety
Descriptive scope: 4 PCTE

N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here