Actively caring states

Likewise, certain past or present situations or environmental conditions can influence or establish physiological or psychological states within individuals. This, in turn, can affect their behavior. From the behavioral science perspective, a basic mechanism for doing fhis is fo use fhe power of positive consequences. 

It is important to maintain a healthy level of self-esteem and to help others raise their self-esteem. Research shows that people with high self-esteem report fewer negative 

Those with higher self-esteem also handle life s stresses better (Brown and McGill, 

Recall the discussion of stress vs. distress in Chapter 7. Higher self-esteem turns stress into something positive, rather than negative distress. 

Here is something to keep in mind, though. It has also been found that people with high self-esteem are less willing to ask for help than people with low self-esteem (Nadler and Fisher, 1986 Weiss and Knight, 1980). Later in this chapter, I discuss in more detail research that shows a direct relationship between self-esteem and actively caring behavior. 

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The 20 questions included in Figure 15.11 were selected from the actively caring person scale of our Safety Culture Survey. Each of the five actively caring states discussed in this chapter is assessed. There are only four questions per state, so this should not be considered a reliable nor a valid measure of these factors. In other words, do not read too much into this survey. Just respond to each query according to the instructions and then check the answer key in Figure 15.12 to increase your imderstanding of the five actively caring person states. 

As previously noted, MS technology was first applied in the broad area of metabolic screening for neonatal diseases. The value of this approach has been seen from the fact that it is still used extensively for this purpose around the world. This application, however, may ultimately be viewed as merely the tip of the iceberg, given the potential that analysis of proteins and metabolites has in refining our understanding of diseases and active disease states during clinical care. 

Procedures/responslbllltles the CER includes a section on the Management of Production Activities . This states that To apply the eight guiding principles of its Responsible Care policy, Solvay is introducing harmonized standards and methods. ... 

As Geller states, in a total safety culture, employees actively care on a continuing basis for safety. To achieve a total safety culture, employees must believe they have personal control over the safety of their organization [2],... 

The strategies covered here for getting the most from interpersonal conversation are reviewed in Figure 13.9. Each technique is relevant for getting more safety-related involvement from others. Applying these strategies effectively can improve one s self-talk or intrapersonal conversation. This leads to increased self-esteem and perceptions of empowerment—person states which enhance an individual s willingness to actively care for the safety and health of others. Evidence for this is detailed in Section 5 of this Handbook. 

My main point here is that gossip can be good—if it is positive. When we talk about the success of others in behavior-specific terms, we begin a cycle of positive communication that can support desired behavior. It also helps to build an internal script for self-motivation. We also set an example for the kind of inter- and intrapersonal conversations that increase self-esteem, empowerment, and group cohesion. As explained in Section 5 of this Handbook, these are the very person states that increase actively caring behaviors and cultivate the achievement of a Total Safety Culture. 

Section 4 of this Handbook addresses the need to increase actively caring behavior throughout a culture and to get the maximum safety and health benefits from this type of behavioral intervention. Psychologists have identified conditions and individual diarac-teristics (or person states) that influence people s willingness to actively care for the safety or health of others. I shall present these and link them to practical things we can do to increase the occurrence of active caring. 

Thus, in situations where the need for intervention or corrective action is not obvious, people will seek information from others to rmderstand what is going on and to receive direction. This is the typical state of affairs when it comes to safety in the workplace. In fact, the need for proactive actively caring behavior is rarely as obvious as smoke entering a room or the soxmd of a crash. If activators like these occurred in the workplace, many people would likely react in a hurry. Such events would be noticeable and likely would be interpreted as needing attention. 

Increasing these states, and thus the willingness to actively care for safety, is key to achieving a Total Safety Culture and is addressed in the next two chapters. 

Frustration often provokes aggressive behavior perceptions of helplessness can inhibit constructive behavior or facilitate inactivity. In contrast, certain life experiences can affect positive person states, such as optimism, personal control, self-confidence, and belongingness. This, in turn, increases constructive behavior, including actively caring. 

Figure 153 Certain person states influence an individual s willingness to actively care for the safety and health of others.

Figure 15.11 These 20 survey items assess the 5 actively caring person states.

Figure 15.12 Scoring your answers to the 20 person-state items will increase your imder-standing of the actively caring model.

The actively caring person states are reflected in Maslow s hierarchy of... 

As mentioned in Chapter 14, researchers have manipulated optimistic states or moods by giving test subjects xmexpected rewards or positive feedback and, then, observing the frequency of actively caring behaviors. Isen and Levin (1972), for example, observed that 84 percent of fhose individuals who foxmd a dime in the coin-return slot of a public phone (placed fhere by researchers) helped an accomplice pick up papers he dropped in the subject s vicinity. In contrast, only four percenf of those who did not find a dime helped the... 

I am sure you can see the strong connection between the emotional intelligence concept and the actively caring model discussed previously. Each of the actively caring person states—self-esteem, self-efficacy, personal control, optimism, and belonging—reflect an aspect of emotional intelligence, as conceptualized by Goleman (1995,1998). 

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