M.G, S P; K.S, A; Rajendran, S and Sen, K N (2025) The role of psychological contract in enhancing safety climate and safety behavior in the construction industry. Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 23(4), pp. 1189-1210. ISSN 1726-0531
Abstract
Purpose: This study aims to explore the "psychological contract of safety" (PCS), a key factor in the safety climate (SC), which relies on the behavioral safety actions of workers at construction sites. While numerous factors have been identified in various sectors across different countries, there is a consensus among researchers that there is a dearth of common assessment factors specifically for the Indian construction industry (ICI). Therefore, this study undertakes a systematic review of existing literature to identify the factors that determine PCS in construction and to ascertain the relative importance index (RII) of these variables and their interrelationships using structural equation modelling (SEM). Design/methodology/approach: A structured survey was conducted among 420 professionals in the ICI to collect data. This data was then analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods to derive results. Findings: The findings of the study indicate that PCS factors have a significant impact on the construction industry (CI). The inferential analysis ranks "Safety System" as the top factor with the highest RII value. The chi-square results highlight two key SC factors that enhance and regulate an organization's safety performance. The SEM results reveal that SC factors contribute to the improvement of PCS and influence worker safety behavior. Originality/value: The outcomes of this study will be beneficial for stakeholders aiming to improve safety at construction sites and enhance safety performance by fulfilling the mutual safety obligations of employers and employees and by improving safety norms, procedures and policy-making. This paper also provides a theoretical framework for scholars to reassess the results in various contexts.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction industry; construction site safety; psychological contract; safe behavior; safety; safety climate |
| Index terms: | norms, safety performance, systematic literature review, construction industry, safety climate, structural equation modelling, safety behaviour, construction site, relative importance index, psychological contract, statistical method, methodology, survey |
| Subjects: | research methods, statistical analysis, sociology, data collection methods, health safety and environment, work location, risk assessment, industry analysis, psychology, research evaluation and metrics, occupational health and safety management |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Organizational Design, Health and Safety, Site Management, Risk Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
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