Psychosocial Hazards among Field Workers in the Construction Industry Across Demographic Groups in Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study explores how psychosocial hazards affect safety outcomes, particularly across demographic characteristics in the construction industry in Rivers State, Nigeria. Questionnaires were distributed to workers in the construction companies in Rivers State to get their responses on psychosocial hazards such as workload, role clarity, social support, and organizational culture. A questionnaire-based survey also collected data on the demographic variables of the workers. Two- hundred and ninty-five respondents had a complete and usable questionnaire. Pearson correlation coefficients and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) were used to understand the relationship between the psychosocial factors with the safety outcome and the relationship with demographic variables. The result revealed that male workers faced higher stress, accidents, and near misses, while females grappled with role ambiguity but reported better social support. The results from correlation analysis revealed that higher workload correlated with increased accidents and near misses. Adequate equipment and suitable environment equate with positive job performance, positive organisational culture leads to low accident rates. Also, clear job roles were linked to improved performance and fewer accidents. Psychosocial hazards have not gained high attention in most industries, but with the improvements in this field of research, safety of workers holistically will be attained.