INVESTIGATING LINEAR MODELS OF ACCIDENT CAUSATION: A REVIEW STUDY IN THE CONSTRUCTION SAFETY CONTEXT

A major challenge of today is to prevent accidents from occurring in the construction industry. Hence, the causes of accidents need to be defined at the first step. Due to the emerging need for determining causes of accidents, several accident causation theories and models are developed. However, traditional accident modeling approaches are insufficient to analyze accidents occurring in complex environments. Accidents do not only occur due to human factors but also occur due to mechanical and environmental factors. Hence, a more systemic approach is crucial in accident modeling research. This paper reviews key traditional accident causation theories and models and lists their strengths and limitations. The main contribution of this paper is to reveal the lacking points of existing accident causation approaches, emphasize the need for more essential causation models, and encourage safety practitioners to develop more efficient accident prevention strategies. In this respect, the paper presents linear accident causation models, which are traditional theories of accident causation focusing on linear sequence of events. The paper is expected to guide health and safety practitioners to find the real causes of accidents by means of a systematic analysis and understand the process for accident analysis and prevention.

___

  • OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) (2020). Commonly Used Statistics. Retrived from ⦁ https://www.osha.gov/data/commonstats#:~:text=Construction's%20%22Fatal%20Four%22⦁ &⦁ text=The%20leading%20causes%20of%20private,and%20caught%2Din%2Fbetween
  • ⦁ Hollnagel, E., Nemeth, C. P., & Dekker, S. (Eds.). (2008). Resilience engineering perspectives: remaining sensitive to the possibility of failure (Vol. 1). Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
  • ⦁ Underwood, P., & Waterson, P. (2013). Accident analysis models and methods: guidance for safety professionals. Loughborough University.
  • ⦁ Gibb, A., Lingard, H., Behm, M., & Cooke, T. (2014). Construction accident causality: learning from different countries and differing consequences. Construction Management and Economics, 32(5), 446-459.
  • ⦁ HSE (Health and Safety Executive), A. (2006). Analysis of the Significant Causes of Fatal and Major Injuries in Construction in Scotland. Health and Safety Executive, Glasgow.
  • ⦁ Hosseinian, S. S., & Torghabeh, Z. J. (2012). Major theories of construction accident causation models: A literature review. International Journal of Advances in Engineering & Technology, 4(2), 53.
  • ⦁ Hollnagel, E. 2010. FRAM Background. http://sites.google.com/site/erikhollnagel2/coursematerials/ FRAM_background.pdf. [Google Scholar].
  • ⦁ Woolley, M. J., Goode, N., Read, G. J., & Salmon, P. M. (2019). Have we reached the organisational ceiling? a review of applied accident causation models, methods and contributing factors in construction. Theoretical issues in ergonomics science, 20(5), 533-555.
  • ⦁ Toft, Y., G. Dell, K. Klockner, and A. Hutton. 2012. “Models of Causation: Safety.” OHS Body of Knowledge. [Google Scholar].
  • ⦁ Heinrich, H.W., 1936. Industrial Accident Prevention. McGraw-Hill, NY.
  • ⦁ Reason, J. (1997). Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.
  • ⦁ Rasmussen, J. (1997). Risk management in a dynamic society: a modelling problem. Safety science, 27(2), 183-213.
  • ⦁ Perrow, C., (1984). Normal Accidents: Living With High-Risk Technologies. Basic, New York.
  • ⦁ Leveson, N. (2004). A new accident model for engineering safer systems. Safety science, 42(4), 237-270.
  • ⦁ Petersen, D. (1982). Human Error—Reduction and Safety Management. STPM Press, New York
  • ⦁ Zeller, D. B. (1986). ‘‘Heinrich revisited.’’ Profl. Safety, 31(10), 40–42.
  • ⦁ Abraha, H. H., & Liyanage, J. P. (2015). Review of theories and accident causation models: Understanding of human-context dyad toward the use in modern complex systems. In Proceedings of the 7th World Congress on Engineering Asset Management (WCEAM 2012) (pp. 17-32). Springer, Cham.
  • ⦁ Qureshi, Z. H. (2008). A review of accident modelling approaches for complex critical sociotechnical systems. Defence Science And Technology Organisation Edinburgh (Australia) Command Control Communications And Intelligence Div.
  • ⦁ Leveson, N.G., 2002. System Safety Engineering: Back to the Future. Aeronautics andAstronautics Department, Massachu setts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,MA. .
  • ⦁ Leveson, N.G., Allen, P., Storey, Margaret-Anne, 2002. The analysis of a friendly fireaccident using a systems model of accidents. In: Proceedings of the 20thInternational System Safety Conference, Denver, Colorado, 5–9 August.
  • ⦁ Perrow, C. (1999). Normal accidents: Living with high risk technologies (2nd Edition). Princeton university press
  • ⦁ Kashefizadeh, M. H., Ressang, A., & Mohajeri, F. (2014). Incorporated Domino-HIRARCH Accident Model for Categorizing the Construction Hazards. IAMURE International Journal of Mathematics, Engineering & Technology, 9, 40.
  • ⦁ Rad, K. G. (2013). Application of domino theory to justify and prevent accident occurance in construction sites. IOSR J. Mech. Civ. Eng. IOSR-JMCE, 6, 72-76.
  • ⦁ Reason, J., Hollnagel, E., & Paries, J. (2006). Revisiting the Swiss cheese model of accidents. Journal of Clinical Engineering, 27(4), 110-115.
  • ⦁ Larouzee, J., & Le Coze, J. C. (2020). Good and bad reasons: the Swiss cheese model and its critics. Safety science, 126, 104660.
  • ⦁ Underwood, P., & Waterson, P. (2014). Systems thinking, the Swiss Cheese Model and accident analysis: a comparative systemic analysis of the Grayrigg train derailment using the ATSB, AcciMap and STAMP models. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 68, 75-94.
  • ⦁ Vicente, K. J., & Christoffersen, K. (2006). The Walkerton E. coli outbreak: a test of Rasmussen's framework for risk management in a dynamic society. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, 7(02), 93-112.
  • ⦁ Gong, Y., & Li, Y. (2018). STAMP-based causal analysis of China-Donghuang oil transportation pipeline leakage and explosion accident. Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 56, 402-413.
  • ⦁ Altabbakh, H., AlKazimi, M. A., Murray, S., & Grantham, K. (2014). STAMP–Holistic system safety approach or just another risk model?. Journal of loss prevention in the process industries, 32, 109-119.
  • ⦁ Hopkins, A. (1999). The limits of normal accident theory. Safety Science, 32(2), 93-102.
  • ⦁ Skilton, P. F., & Robinson, J. L. (2009). Traceability and normal accident theory: how does supply network complexity influence the traceability of adverse events?. Journal of Supply Chain Management, 45(3), 40-53.
  • ⦁ Wolf, F., & Sampson, P. (2007). Evidence of an interaction involving complexity and coupling as predicted by normal accident theory. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 15(3), 123-133.