Employer-Based Behavioral Safety Programs for Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers: Examining the Role of Individual, Organizational, and Methodological Factors on Their Effectiveness

Abstract

An understanding of the prevalence of theory within employer-based behavioral traffic safety programs is lacking in both the literature and workplace. The dangerous nature of workplace driving is understood far more than how to change driver behavior. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the existence of ten different behavioral change theories and models within articles that contain populations of professional drivers. The ten theories are presented based on their focus on individual differences between drivers or organizational factors. A review of the prevalence of these theories within behavior-based safety programs and an examination of their effectiveness through the lens of individual, organizational, and methodological factors is also presented. Results indicate that behavioral-change theories are helpful frameworks in crafting effective employer-based driver safety programs. The paper concludes by offering recommendations to employers for the creation and sustainment of theorybased driver safety programs based on current evidence in the literature.