9
The critical nature of safety culture is also supported
in the literature. Horberry and Cooke [26] similarly found
that safety culture affected mineworkers’ perspectives on
incidents, where interviewees tended to blame individuals
rather than exploring other options. Promotion of safety has
also been shown to have the greatest effect on safety behav-
iors [27]. To improve safety culture, sites should consider
repeating safety messages frequently to better achieve recall
[28] and ultimately allow their mineworkers to internalize
safety as a value [29]. Some potential topics supported by
the current study include the importance of reporting near-
miss incidents, following established safety protocols, and
encouraging open communication about safety concerns.
Taking It Further
What is particularly unique about this data set is that it
provides a detailed account from the operator’s perspective.
Information related to what the operator was sensing and
thinking is typically not available or included in traditional
fatality or other incident reports. The detailed accounts
given by haul truck operators surrounding their decision-
making processes during challenging situations provided
valuable insights from which safety solutions might be
developed. For example, participant CDM-2 described a
near-miss event that was initiated by reaching for a door
that popped open due to an unreported faulty door latch.
If that incident had ultimately resulted in fatal accident, it’s
possible no one would have discovered this critical piece
of information leaving the cause of the incident open for
speculation. By examining near-miss events, the degree to
which something as seemingly minor as a “faulty door”
latch is viewed as a safety risk to haul-truck operators can be
calibrated and addressed. Using these narratives, research-
ers continue to develop outputs such as the accident re-
creation videos described in Bellanca et al. [28] so these
otherwise unknown details can be shared with the industry.
These real-world scenarios can be used to prepare haul truck
operators to make decisions based on shared experiences.
Beyond the critical themes discussed in this paper,
these results also can be used to inform additional train-
ing programs, such as simulation-based training exercises,
that allow for the development of problem-solving skills
and practice of decision-making to improve operator abil-
ity to handle unexpected situations. However, it is criti-
cal to remember that corrective actions taken after safety
incidents or improvement of operator performance do
not always require more or better training. Consideration
should also be given to prevention and mitigation strate-
gies that target processes, procedures, technologies, and sys-
tems, when appropriate.
LIMITATIONS
While this paper provides unique insight into haul truck
safety issues, there are several limitations to consider. First,
the CDM framework is generally designed for interviewees
with considerable experience and are experts in the field of
interest. While the median level of experience of the haul
truck operators who participated in this study was 15 years,
participants had a wide range of experience, and some par-
ticipants were relatively inexperienced. Also noteworthy is
that some of the near-miss events occurred decades ago,
and there were differences in policies, procedures, and best
practices on how to respond to these non-routine situations
then as compared to now. Despite this, all participants
reported having firsthand experience in a situation they
recognized as a near-miss event and having learned from it.
Another limitation of this study is the small sample
size. Additional themes and the frequency with which
themes occur could be different in the full population.
These limitations were partially mitigated by the breadth
of mine types and sizes. However, the prevalence of the
themes should be used with caution and it’s best to con-
sider that additional themes may also be relevant. Similarly,
as Braun and Clark (2006) highlight, high frequency of
occurrence does not necessarily mean the themes them-
selves are the most significant [19]. In this study, previous
literature (see discussion) and the domain specific knowl-
edge of the NIOSH researchers support the importance
of the identified themes. Finally, self-selection at both the
organizational and individual levels could bias the data in
that potential differences between participants and non-
participants could negatively impact the generalizability of
the results.
Overall, these limitations along with inherent limi-
tations related to the subjective nature of qualitative data
should be considered when interpreting the results of the
study. Further research is needed to obtain a more compre-
hensive understanding of how best to prepare haul truck
operators to avoid or mitigate accidents through sound
decision-making.
CONCLUSION
These results provide valuable information to industry
stakeholders interested in understanding how haul truck
fatalities continue to occur. Oftentimes, a considerable
amount of information is lost making it difficult to deter-
mine root causes. This is particularly true in fatal incidents
because the operator is often the victim. These CDM inter-
views provide valuable information about haul truck safety
that might not otherwise be revealed. The awareness that is
raised by these accounts and lessons learned through this
The critical nature of safety culture is also supported
in the literature. Horberry and Cooke [26] similarly found
that safety culture affected mineworkers’ perspectives on
incidents, where interviewees tended to blame individuals
rather than exploring other options. Promotion of safety has
also been shown to have the greatest effect on safety behav-
iors [27]. To improve safety culture, sites should consider
repeating safety messages frequently to better achieve recall
[28] and ultimately allow their mineworkers to internalize
safety as a value [29]. Some potential topics supported by
the current study include the importance of reporting near-
miss incidents, following established safety protocols, and
encouraging open communication about safety concerns.
Taking It Further
What is particularly unique about this data set is that it
provides a detailed account from the operator’s perspective.
Information related to what the operator was sensing and
thinking is typically not available or included in traditional
fatality or other incident reports. The detailed accounts
given by haul truck operators surrounding their decision-
making processes during challenging situations provided
valuable insights from which safety solutions might be
developed. For example, participant CDM-2 described a
near-miss event that was initiated by reaching for a door
that popped open due to an unreported faulty door latch.
If that incident had ultimately resulted in fatal accident, it’s
possible no one would have discovered this critical piece
of information leaving the cause of the incident open for
speculation. By examining near-miss events, the degree to
which something as seemingly minor as a “faulty door”
latch is viewed as a safety risk to haul-truck operators can be
calibrated and addressed. Using these narratives, research-
ers continue to develop outputs such as the accident re-
creation videos described in Bellanca et al. [28] so these
otherwise unknown details can be shared with the industry.
These real-world scenarios can be used to prepare haul truck
operators to make decisions based on shared experiences.
Beyond the critical themes discussed in this paper,
these results also can be used to inform additional train-
ing programs, such as simulation-based training exercises,
that allow for the development of problem-solving skills
and practice of decision-making to improve operator abil-
ity to handle unexpected situations. However, it is criti-
cal to remember that corrective actions taken after safety
incidents or improvement of operator performance do
not always require more or better training. Consideration
should also be given to prevention and mitigation strate-
gies that target processes, procedures, technologies, and sys-
tems, when appropriate.
LIMITATIONS
While this paper provides unique insight into haul truck
safety issues, there are several limitations to consider. First,
the CDM framework is generally designed for interviewees
with considerable experience and are experts in the field of
interest. While the median level of experience of the haul
truck operators who participated in this study was 15 years,
participants had a wide range of experience, and some par-
ticipants were relatively inexperienced. Also noteworthy is
that some of the near-miss events occurred decades ago,
and there were differences in policies, procedures, and best
practices on how to respond to these non-routine situations
then as compared to now. Despite this, all participants
reported having firsthand experience in a situation they
recognized as a near-miss event and having learned from it.
Another limitation of this study is the small sample
size. Additional themes and the frequency with which
themes occur could be different in the full population.
These limitations were partially mitigated by the breadth
of mine types and sizes. However, the prevalence of the
themes should be used with caution and it’s best to con-
sider that additional themes may also be relevant. Similarly,
as Braun and Clark (2006) highlight, high frequency of
occurrence does not necessarily mean the themes them-
selves are the most significant [19]. In this study, previous
literature (see discussion) and the domain specific knowl-
edge of the NIOSH researchers support the importance
of the identified themes. Finally, self-selection at both the
organizational and individual levels could bias the data in
that potential differences between participants and non-
participants could negatively impact the generalizability of
the results.
Overall, these limitations along with inherent limi-
tations related to the subjective nature of qualitative data
should be considered when interpreting the results of the
study. Further research is needed to obtain a more compre-
hensive understanding of how best to prepare haul truck
operators to avoid or mitigate accidents through sound
decision-making.
CONCLUSION
These results provide valuable information to industry
stakeholders interested in understanding how haul truck
fatalities continue to occur. Oftentimes, a considerable
amount of information is lost making it difficult to deter-
mine root causes. This is particularly true in fatal incidents
because the operator is often the victim. These CDM inter-
views provide valuable information about haul truck safety
that might not otherwise be revealed. The awareness that is
raised by these accounts and lessons learned through this