Development of a safety climate questionnaire for nuclear power plants

The present work describes the development of a safety climate questionnaire adapted for nuclear power installations. The survey was administered to all personnel at a Swedish nuclear power plant. Exploratory factor analysis revealed 8 factors together explaining 62% of the variance. The first factor was interpreted as Safety management and explained 38% of the variance. The other factors were labelled; Safety knowledge, Resources (time, personnel), Management/change management, Small group climate, Contractors, Documentation/experience feedback, and Occupational safety. The results are discussed and related to theoretical and methodological issues in safety culture and safety climate research.