Formative research for a social marketing safety campaign at a biomedical research facility

Purpose The purpose of this study is to consider the potential use of social marketing to enhance safety compliance in a biomedical research laboratory. Design/methodology/approach This project used focus group discussions (n = 32) and semi-structured interviews (n = 10) to gather information on occupational health and safety professionals’ perceptions of safety culture, knowledge of barriers and facilitators of safety at the worksite and insights on how to effectively communicate safety information to employees through a campaign effort. Findings Results outlined the barriers (e.g. structural obstacles, lack of awareness of policies, perception of occupational safety and health professionals as safety police) and facilitators (e.g. rapport building, partnering with formal leadership and demonstrating the value of services) of safety and safety communication. Originality/value Results from this work add to theoretical and practical knowledge regarding how risk may be effectively addressed by using social marketing and health behavior theories to promote voluntary adherence to existing rules and recommendations.