Citation

Caffaro F, Roccato M, Micheletti Cremasco M, Cavallo E. Hum. Factors 2018; 60(1): 20-30.

Affiliation

Institute for Agricultural and Earthmoving Machines of the National Research Council of Italy, Torino.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0018720817738591

PMID

29091463

Abstract

OBJECTIVE We investigated the risk factors for falls when egressing from agricultural tractors, analyzing the role played by worked hours, work experience, operators' behavior, and near misses. Background Many accidents occur within the agricultural sector each year. Among them, falls while dismounting the tractor represent a major source of injuries. Previous studies pointed out frequent hazardous movements and incorrect behaviors adopted by operators to exit the tractor cab. However, less is known about the determinants of such behaviors. In addition, near misses are known to be important predictors of accidents, but they have been under-investigated in the agricultural sector in general and as concerns falls in particular.

METHOD A questionnaire assessing dismounting behaviors, previous accidents and near misses, and participants' relation with work was administered to a sample of Italian tractor operators ( n = 286).

RESULTS A mediated model showed that worked hours increase unsafe behaviors, whereas work experience decreases them. Unsafe behaviors in turn show a positive association with accidents, via the mediation of near misses.

CONCLUSIONS We gave a novel contribution to the knowledge of the chain of events leading to fall accidents in the agricultural sector, which is one of the most hazardous industries. Applications Besides tractor design improvements, preventive training interventions may focus on the redesign of the actual working strategies and the adoption of engaging training methods in the use of machinery to optimize the learning of safety practices and safe behaviors.

Language: en

Keywords

accident analysis; agricultural systems; motor behavior; slips and falls; structural equation modeling