Corporate financial decision makers' perceptions of their
company's safety performance, programs and personnel: Do company size and
industry injury risk matter?
Affiliations: College of Business, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh,
Oshkosh, WI, USA | Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety,
Hopkinton, MA, USA | Department of Psychology, Colorado State University,
Fort Collins, CO, USA
Note: [] Address for correspondence: Sarah DeArmond, Ph.D., College of
Business Administration, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, 800 Algoma Boulevard,
Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA. Tel.: +1 920 424 7192; Fax: +1 920 424 7413; E-mail:
dearmons@uwosh.edu
Abstract: Objective: Top-level managers make important decisions about
safety-related issues, yet little research has been done involving these
individuals. The current study explored corporate financial decisions makers'
perceptions of their company's safety and their justifications for these
perceptions. This study also explored whether their perceptions and
justifications varied as a function of company size or industry injury risk. Participants: A total of 404 individuals who were the most senior
managers responsible for making decisions about property and casualty risk at
their companies participated in this study. Methods: The participants took part in a telephone survey. Results: The results suggest that corporate financial decision makers have positive views of safety at their
companies relative to safety at other companies within their industries.
Further, many believe their company's safety is influenced by the
attention/emphasis placed on safety and the selection and training of safety
personnel. Participants' perceptions varied somewhat based on the size of their
company and the level of injury risk in their industry. Conclusions: While definitive conclusions about corporate financial decision makers'
perceptions of safety cannot be reached as a result of this single study, this
work does lay groundwork for future research aimed at better understanding the
perceptions top-level managers.
Keywords: Occupational safety, top-level managers, company size, industry injury risk
