Human Factors In Safety Workshop: Behavioral Science In Safety And Health

Human behaviour often appears illogical, unreasonable and even irrational. This is all very well if one is dealing with a child whom one could slowly teach and discipline, but is a challenge if one is dealing with workers who could pose a safety hazard to others. A better understanding of the complex interplay of multiple objectives, decision-making strategies and tradeoffs in the naturalistic environment will help to explain and anticipate workers' behaviour. For safety and health professionals, this expertise is essential to ensure a safe working environment.

A workshop titled 'Behavioural Science in Safety and Health' was conducted by Prof Marc Resnick, Professor in Human Factors in Information Design at Bentley University in Massachusetts and the External Examiner for the Bachelor of Science in Human Factors in Safety (BHFSY) programme, from Aug 20 - 21. The workshop, co-organised by School of Science and Technology (SST) and the Continuing Education & Training team, aimed to reach out to local safety professionals. As part of SST's objective to provide an enhanced and value-added education for students, the workshop was also opened to BHFSY students and associates. 

Dr Ng Wee Tong, an associate faculty in the BHFSY programme, said: "It's great to hear from Prof Resnick and learn together with my students about something that is very relevant to workplace safety."

_{Prof Marc Resnick (centre) together with students and associates of the BHFSY programme, UniSIM staff
and local safety professionals.}