Investigating the Relationship Between Occupational Safety Culture and Accident Rates in Nigerian Construction Companies

This research investigates the relationship between occupational safety culture dimensions and accident rates in construction companies operating across Nigeria's North Central and North West geopolitical zones. Construction remains one of Nigeria's most accident-prone industries, yet the academic literature examining safety culture as a predictor of accident outcomes in the Nigerian construction context is limited, particularly for medium and large-scale contractors. This study employs a quantitative cross-sectional design, applying the Safety Climate Tool developed by the Health and Safety Executive to measure safety culture across eight dimensions: management commitment, supervisor support, peer behaviour, safety communication, safety rules compliance, worker involvement, perceived risk, and work pressure. Survey data were collected from five hundred and twelve construction workers across thirty-one project sites in Abuja, Kogi State, and Kebbi State. Accident rate data were extracted from companies' incident reporting records covering three years preceding the survey. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis reveals that management commitment and safety communication dimensions are the strongest predictors of accident rates, explaining thirty-one percent of variance in accident outcomes after controlling for project type, workforce size, and contractor tier. Peer behaviour dimensions show significant moderation effects on the management commitment-accident rate relationship. Keywords: occupational safety culture, accident rates, construction industry, regression analysis, North Central Nigeria