Article by Dr Robert Long, rouse around all you common sense and zero zealots surely we can escalate more things to ban and more things to police. If you liked this article then you should read the whole series: CLICK HERE. I highly recommend you check out Rob’s book “RISK MAKES SENSE” Non Common … [Read more...] about Non Common Sense Mythology
SAFETY MYTHS
The Mythic Symbology of Safety
The Mythic Symbology of Safety One of the strange contradictions in the world of safety is between the positivist materialist paradigm that dominates the WHS curriculum/texts and the mythic symbology that dominates safety discourse about the activity of enacting safe-work. How strange that one … [Read more...] about The Mythic Symbology of Safety
Posture Myths and Holistic Ergonomics
Myths are easily maintained when accompanied by symbols. The merging of symbol and myth creates a new truth, symbolic truth. Such truth is not real or true, but is made symbolically true. We see this all the time in the safety industry with simple constructs like the Swiss Cheese (Reason) or domino … [Read more...] about Posture Myths and Holistic Ergonomics
Don’t Be Emotional! Another Safety Myth
As our society (and safety industry) continues to suffer under the burden of Scientism (Positivism), we still here this terrible accusation ‘don’t be emotional’. More so, even most awfully directed at women. This kind of language promotes ignorance from assumptions about personhood developed 300 … [Read more...] about Don’t Be Emotional! Another Safety Myth
Culture Myths in Safety
The language of ‘culture’ is perhaps the most used and abused in the safety industry. Everyone seems to have a view of culture, the poorly educated and miseducated seem to make the most noise. One certainly gains little expertise in culture from studying engineering, safety or behaviourism. So, … [Read more...] about Culture Myths in Safety
Prophets to Safety Not, Profits from Safety Myths
When we look at the flood of ‘noise’ that bombards safety, the many gimmicks, slogans, symbols and myths, it’s challenging to cut through to the basics. When so much money is to be made in ‘easy pickings’ off an industry seeking ‘silver bullets’ (https://safetyrisk.net/the-silver-bullet/), it’s so … [Read more...] about Prophets to Safety Not, Profits from Safety Myths
Gimmicks and Myths of Avoidance in Safety
Someone sent me a thing the other day labelled as ‘brilliance’ and it was yet just another safety gimmick that yet again served as a distraction from discussing the essentials in safety – listening, helping, caring and learning. This is what safety does so well. It creates gimmicks and labels them … [Read more...] about Gimmicks and Myths of Avoidance in Safety
The Myth of Fast and Slow Thinking
I was reading a book on numerics and statistics this morning and the author quoted Kahneman (as fact) as if humans make decisions in two speeds. According to Kahneman’s binary ‘theory’ humans only make decisions at two speeds – slow/rational/analytical and fast/automatic. This is a myth, there is … [Read more...] about The Myth of Fast and Slow Thinking
SAFETY IS A MYTH, LONG LIVE SAFETY
In the recent days since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, much has been said regarding this. A particular post on Facebook from Australia journalist Van Badham particularly took my eye. The third point is particularly poignant to safety. Safety invests in its symbols with a different meaning … [Read more...] about SAFETY IS A MYTH, LONG LIVE SAFETY
SPoR and Disposing of Bad Myths
Continuing our series on Safety Myths – see them all here The power of a myth is its symbolic exchange for an outcome. Myth in itself is not bad, it depends on the purpose and ethic of the myth. The same with ritual. The first question we need to ask when it comes to myth and ritual in safety is: … [Read more...] about SPoR and Disposing of Bad Myths