Can humor improve workplace occupational safety? Renate Mayer & Michael Reffi on behavior change – plus Ulrich Hank on safety culture.
Can humor make occupational safety training more effective? Issue 61 of GOOD TO KNOW! takes a close look – and the answer is a confident yes.
Dr. Renate Mayer and Michael Reffi of ZEBRA-FACTOR have built their work around creative methods in workplace safety: events, theater, books, and now comedy clips. In this interview, they explain why lasting behavior change depends on meeting core psychological needs – autonomy, competence, and a sense of belonging – and why joy in safety training is not a nice-to-have, but a deliberate method.
Rounding out the issue is a new column, IN A NUTSHELL: Ulrich Hank, Deputy Board Member of the VDSI and former long-term HSE Director at E.ON and innogy, calls for a more honest conversation about safety culture. His argument: occupational safety must be embedded in overall company culture – not treated as a discipline apart.
An essential read for anyone who wants to not just teach safety, but make it stick. Find the link to the full issue in the comments.