Defining and Assessing Safety Culture in High Reliability Systems

Fleming, M. T., Flin, R., Mearns, K., & Gordon, R. (1996). The offshore supervisor’s role
in safety management: Law enforcer or risk manager. Paper presented at the Third
International Conference on Health, Safety and Environment in Oil and Gas Exploration
and Production. New Orleans.
Safety professional’s opinions and research evidence regarding the role of superiority in safety
management were reviewed, suggesting that Superiors play a very important role in safety
management. A study designed to examine the role of the Superior in safety and to identify best
supervisory practice in offshore worksite risk management was presented. The study was carried
out in two phases:
(1) holding discussion groups with workers to establish the key skills and behaviors for effective
supervision,
(2) interviewing supervisors using Critical Incident Technique, distributing a questionnaire to
measure the subordinates’ risk taking behaviors and evaluation of the supervisors.
The Superiors were classified into effective and less effective ones according the level of risk
taking behavior of their work groups. The differences between effective Superiors and less
effective Superiors were identified. The results showed that the most effective supervisors were
similar: they tended to use a more participative management style. They saw themselves as risk
managers who took a broad perspective and used the expertise of all those involved in the task to
effectively manage the risks and their work force. They emphasized teamwork and the expertise
of their work group. They appeared to value their work group and the work that they performed.
They seemed to see safety as important and major part of their role, as an objective overseer.
They spoke of managing the risks and carrying out risk assessments based on the knowledge
gathered from the workers involved in the operation. The poorer supervisors differed from
effective superiors and from each other in management style.
Flin, R., & Martin, L. (1997). Behavioral markers for CRM. Paper presented at the Ninth
International Symposium on Aviation Psychology. Columbus, OH.
Crew Resource Management (CRM) was designed to improve social and cognitive skills on the
flight deck with the aim of pilots applying non-technical skills to reduce the risk of accidents
where such psychological factors can play a central or contributory role in the causation chain.
During the last two decades, however, CRM has been in danger of losing its focus. Refocusing
requires the establishment of a set of behavioral makers. This paper describes a study aimed at
collating and synthesizing a sample of evidence on CRM behavioral makers and their current use
in the UK, mainland Europe and the USA. The initial stage of this collation data was presented,
and a description of items was given. Two arising issues—item meaning and boundaries between
items were discussed.
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