Positive Feedback via Descriptive Comments for Improved Safety Inspection Responsiveness and Compliance

Abstract

The format of feedback can have a significant impact on the outcome of an evaluation. Checklists, a common tool in health and safety inspections, have limited potential to change practices and habits between utilizations because implicitly they are finite in terms of conveying priority or providing guidance on how to solve cited issues. In addition, they are vulnerable to variability in the thoroughness of application. In contrast, feedback in the form of unstructured descriptive comments has the potential to magnify existing strengths, which sustain an overall good practice between inspections if the comments include positive citations that are specific and detailed. Without inclusion of both positive feedback and unstructured descriptive comments to the standard, structured checklist, inspectors miss the opportunity to reinforce actions already being performed and the opportunity to build on the foundation of existing skill and knowledge. This case study combines principles of management, evaluation tool design, behavioral psychology, and neurological science to explain the impact the authors observed on safety compliance in conjunction with providing positive feedback in unstructured comments as part of annual inspection reports.