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Case studies of occupational falls from heights: cognition and behavior in context
1Division of Safety Research, National Institute of Occupational Health, Copenhagen, Denmark. pk@ami.dk
Problem:
The aim of this study was to examine individual workers' cognitive, behavioral, and motivational processes leading up to occupational falls from heights.
Method:
The study is based on 26 semistructured personal interviews and on-site investigations with male workers who reported to an emergency department for treatment of injuries due to falls from heights.
Results:
A greater number of workers carrying out nonroutine compared to routine tasks perceived, identified, interpreted, and attempted to control a fall hazard. Two cases are presented illustrating how cognition and behavior in context progresses from a lesser to a greater active role in the incident processes. SUMMARY AND IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: The addition of full-scale investigations of how and why workers thought and behaved the way they did in a particular situation can give important clues as to whether preventive measures will be effective in a similar situation in the future.