A systematic review of mental states and safety performance of construction workers

The mental states of construction workers are recognized as having a significant impact on their safety performance, which has attracted the attention of researchers and practitioners. However, existing studies on the mental states of construction workers are fragmented and lack a comprehensive understanding of the key concepts and paths that affect workers' safety performance. This paper systematically reviewed the existing body of knowledge on the mental states of construction workers and identified that existing research on this topic mainly involves mental fatigue, emotional state, and cognition of construction workers. As a prerequisite for safety behavior, the cognitive process mainly includes three stages: situation awareness, response selection, and response execution. Mental fatigue and emotional state affect the entire cognitive process by influencing cognitive factors and interacting with physical states. The key paths by which the mental state affects safety performance are summarized. Specifically, mental fatigue and the emotional state affect situational awareness by altering attention, memory, and alertness; they impact response selection by influencing intention; and they affect response execution by changing perceived effort and motor control. The measurement methods for mental states include subjective measurement scales, physiological indicators, and neurophysiological techniques. The findings of this study deepen the understanding of the influence of mental states of construction workers on their safety performance. Based on the status of the research, this review proposes several future research directions as a reference for future studies on the mental states of construction workers.