Identifying, evaluating and prioritizing the causes of occupational accidents in the construction industry using fuzzy AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The construction industry is one of the most dangerous industries in terms of occupational accidents. Understanding the various factors that affect work-related injuries and deaths in the industry can help develop prevention strategies, improve safety performance and reduce accidents. OBJECTIVES: This applied qualitative study was carried out in several steps to investigate, evaluate and prioritize the causes of occupational accidents in the construction industry. METHODS: In order to extract the most important criteria in construction accidents, the opinions of safety experts and the qualitative Delphi method were used. The Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) was used to determine the weights of selected criteria and finally, the Fuzzy TOPSIS technique was used to rank the causes of occupational accidents in the construction industry. RESULTS: According to the results, governance, occupational, organizational, individual, and environmental factors were the most determinative options for the cause of construction accidents. Prioritizing the causes of occupational accidents in the construction industry using Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy TOPSIS showed that governance and environmental factors were the most effective and least effective factors in construction accidents, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: According to the criteria, and based on fuzzy TOPSIS technique, governance factors were determined to be the primary option for occupational accidents in the construction industry. The results of this study indicate that in addition to organizational factors, individual factors, and environmental factors, the government must also play a role in legislation, law enforcement, implementation, and organization of safety training programs.