ASSESSMENT OF THE SAFETY CULTURE IN PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRIES IN SAUDI ARABIA: A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY

Abstract

Given the inherently hazardous nature of petrochemical operations, an effective safety culture is critical. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, 29 peer-reviewed articles published in open access between 2014 and 2024 were selected to evaluate the status of safety culture dimensions employed in the petrochemical sector. This cross-sectional study assessed safety culture in the Saudi Arabian petrochemical industry and examined the relationships among safety culture dimensions, safety motivation (SM), and safety performance. Safety performance was operationalized as personal error behavior (PEB) and attitudes toward violations (ATV), with SM modeled as a mediating factor. After obtaining IRB approval, a total of 482 employees from the petroleum facilities in Jubail and Yanbu Industrial Cities completed an email-administered survey. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied using SmartPLS and SPSS. The results indicate that safety culture has a significant effect on SM, PEB, and ATV, and that SM significantly mediates the relationship between safety culture and safety performance. To enhance safety outcomes across the petrochemical sector, future studies should focus on longitudinal research to track safety culture trends and extend safety culture assessments to other high-risk environments, including oil exploration, drilling, and gas operations. Additionally, further studies could investigate the development of subcultures within broader safety frameworks, providing deeper insights into the specific safety dynamics at play in these critical sectors.