Proactive Personality and Construction Worker Safety Behavior: Safety Self-Efficacy and Team Member Exchange as Mediators and Safety-Specific Transformational Leadership as Moderators

Abstract

Research on the correlation between personality traits and safety behaviors has been thoroughly explored in previous literature. However, most of these studies are based on explaining the relationship between the Big Five personality traits and safety behavior, with few explaining the relationship between proactive personality and safety behavior. This study relies on trait activation theory, social cognitive theory, and social exchange theory to understand the relationship between proactive personality and safety behavior (safety participation and safety compliance) by using safety self-efficacy and team member exchange as mediating variables and safety-specific transformational leadership as moderating variables. Method: Considering the issue of common method bias, a multi-source and multi-stage data collection research design was used to collect 287 valid questionnaires from construction workers in 10 construction projects and apply regression analysis for hypothesis testing. Conclusions: Research results indicated that proactive personality positively and significantly influenced construction workers’ safety behaviors, while safety self-efficacy and team member exchange partially mediated the relationship between proactive personality and safety behaviors. In addition, safety-specific transformational leadership enhanced the positive relationship between proactive personality and safety behavior. These findings enrich the research on the correlation between personality traits and safety behaviors of construction workers in a safety context.