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The Safety of Work

Ep.33 Can institutional logics help us move beyond safety culture?

Jun 28, 2020
The discussion centers around institutional logics and their impact on safety culture. The hosts critique traditional safety management approaches, emphasizing the need for a contextual understanding. They explore how local rationalities influence decision-making within organizations. The complexities of safety practices in the railway construction industry showcase competing logics of safety and cost. Insights reveal that changing these entrenched logics is challenging, underscoring the importance of understanding them for improved safety outcomes.
45:23

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Institutional logics provide a more nuanced framework for understanding safety behaviors by recognizing the complexities of individual rationalities within organizations.
  • The distinction between traditional safety culture and institutional logics highlights the need for organizations to focus on underlying motivations rather than imposing compliance measures.

Deep dives

Understanding Institutional Work and Logics

Institutional work theory suggests that organizations are not merely the sum of individual actions but are influenced by the processes of building and maintaining institutions. This theory emphasizes the dynamic work individuals undergo to navigate and alter the structures around them. In contrast, institutional logics focuses on broader, fixed frameworks that guide behavior within organizations. These frameworks help define how different stakeholders perceive and make decisions in their professional contexts, shaped by their specific roles and experiences.

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