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HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND INDUSTRIAL SAFETY learning This can have negative aspects os well the worker who figures out a hazard ous short cut, which produces more units, may be rewarded for an unsafe act It is apparent that the employee must be rewarded ooly for safe work methods Higher producbvity because of good, safe work methods satisfies the need for achieve ment and recognition This in itself rein forces the learning of the employee, but also spreads its effect to other employees who see this take place However, a supervisor, recognizing the same needs, can reinforce this learning through praise for greater pro ductivity and telling die worker how much better he is doing, for example Publicity given to a safety record, bonus, a promotion, or anything which satisfies in dividual needs would serve as a reward to reinforce whatever learning has brought about the desired behavior A reward must closely follow the be havior to be rewarded The praise, for ex ample, should be given at the time the de sired behavior occurs, not some long time later This does not mean it must be in stantaneous, but it should be within a rea sonable length of time If delay is neces sary, certainly recall to the individual the reason for the reward Reward reinforces desired learning Short-cut hazardous methods or any other unsafe acts must not be rewarded In fact, in such situations rep rimands or punish ment should be given. Acbon must concen trate on the error and not on the personality involved, for to do otherwise would lead to tnal-and-error by the individual which is no more satisfac tory than the wrong method In short, wrong methods should be corrected by full and complete explana tion and demonstra tion of the correct work procedures Such being the case, it also follows that there should be reward rein forcement of the new correct work pattern as soon as feasible This principle also applies to parbcipabon by employees in a safety program whether it be through suggesbon systems, safety committees, problem discussion groups or training sessions In all these areas a man gains personal worth if his opinions are asked for and graciously re ceived He feels, too, that he is more than lust a "cog," and that he is giving of his creabve self as an important member of the "team " A safety program utilizing the ideas of all, either individually or by representabon, satisfies the need people have for being "in the know " In this way, the safety director creates that posibve atmosphere of ego-in volvement m the program and a sense of obhgabon and responsibility for its success. Research has demonstrated that when em ployees do not feel that programs are toplevel-planned, but rather come from all, there is far more chance for success The rewarding of correct procedures will lead to a more posibve atbtudmal response on the part of the worker than will punish ment A posibve atbtude toward training procedures is much to be desired Both the posibve and the negabve aspects of rein forcement may "generalize" over the whole 5-SI