METHODOLOGY OF SAFETY SCIENCE

By prof. Chao Wu, Central South University, Changsha 410083, CHINA

Copyright 2011 by the China Labor and Social Security Publishing House

ISBN 978-7-5045-9018-3

[Synopsis]

This book is a monograph on safety science methodology and research fruits. The book contains 20 chapters in 5 sections. The section one is the general introduction of safety science methodology, including three chapters: introduction of safety science and the science of safety science; elements of safety science methodology; fundamental of safety science and methodology. The section two is the methodology for safety system science, including four chapters: introduction to safety system approaches; principles of safety system engineering; methods of complex safety systems; modern management methods of safety system. The section three is the safety system methodology of man-machine-environment, including four chapters: safety system control and security simulation methods; research methods of human factors characteristics; human factors analysis and reliability evaluation methods; safety social methodology. The section four is the typical safety science methods, including eight chapters: safety education methodology; safety thinking methods; safety comparative research methods; safety logic methods; safety historical methods; accident statistics analysis methods; safety investigation and observation methods; safety prediction and evaluation and decision-making methods. The section five is the applications and innovations of the safety science methodology, including the graph expression of safety management, mechanics methods of safety management, safety management and safety information dynamics. At the same time, this monograph also demonstrates a lot of new areas of safety science research and many innovative ideas.

This book has the following characteristics:

(1) Previous works on the philosophy of science were written by experts in the fields of philosophy and pure science, but this book’s author is from engineering. One of the biggest differences of authors between engineering and science & philosophy is the extent of theory with practice and in the focus of applications.

(2) Method of writing of this book stands on the view of the science of safety science. The main line of writing the book is from the general introduction of safety methodology, the safety system methodology, the safety science methods of human-machine-environment, typical safety science methods, to the applications of safety science methods.

(3) The book writing is attention to the basic concepts of safety science as better as possible. The text description combined not only the liberal arts writing methods but also with expression of science and engineering, such as chart and models.

(4) The subtitles of each chapter and paragraph in the book were applied. Each chapter has a chapter reading guide in the front and a summary at the end. A number of celebrities and sayings of the ancients and idioms were cited at the end of each chapter to strengthen the climate of philosophy and methodology in the book.

Although many safety science methods described in the book clearly have the traces of evolved from the science methodology and need to be further improved with safety subjects, as the first book of safety science methodology, its publication will play an active role in promoting safety science development. Also, the book has laid a solid foundation for the major of safety science.

The book is suitable for reading by safety research scholars and can serve as a textbook for graduate students of safety science and engineering majors. Also, it is also available for the technical personnel and graduate students in administration, ergonomics, psychology and other relevant scientific fields for reference.

CONTENTS

Reading guide

Author’s innermost thoughts

Preface

[Section one: General introduction to safety science methodology]

Chapter 1  Introduction - safety science and science of the safety science

1.1 Methodology overview

1.2 Safety and safety science

1.3 Connotation and denotation of safety discipline

1.4 Science of the safety science and its axioms

1.5 Safety science methodology and its framework

1.6 Evolution and prospect of the safety science discipline

Chapter 2  Elements of safety science methodology - methodology terminology explanation

2.1 Interpretation of some important terms of methodology

2.2 Connotation of some important terms of social science methodology

2.3 Connotation of some important terms of natural science methodology

2.4 Definition of common terms used for expression of science methodology

2.5 Definition of common terms used for expression of science studies

2.6 Definition of common terms used for expression of engineering science

Chapter 3  Fundamental of safety science methodology – science research methodology

3.1 Methods of collection, sorting and summarization – preliminary work of safety information processing

3.2 Methods of sensibility, intuition and measurement – common sense of safety determination

3.3 Methods of discovery, description and explanation – knowledge of accident investigation

3.4 Methods of foresight, forecast and debate - essential skill of accident prevention

3.5 Methods of imagine, hypothesis and test – approaches to safety analysis

3.6 Methods of design, evaluation and identification - key tools of safety engineering

3.7 Methods of planning, decision making, control and feedback – important parts of safety management

3.8 Methods of structure, hierarchy, corresponding, simulation and simplification - features of safety systems

3.9 Methods of weakness, features and hope listing and axiomatic approach - entry point and ways to safety

3.10 Methods of check, proof, trial and error and validation - routine of safety examination

3.11 Methods of imitation, quote, scripts and shape grid – way to evidence safety

3.12 Methods of operations research - basis for safety optimal decision-making

3.13 Method of expansion – approach to safety causes

[Section two: safety system methodology]

Chapter 4  Introduction to safety system methods - system characteristics and properties

4.1 Overview - safety system thinking

4.2 System approach – guide for safety discipline studies

4.3 Concept, composition and scale of the system - elements of safety system ideas

4.4 Properties of system and application – to grasp the basic functions of safety system

4.5 System functional analysis - study of the characteristics of safety system

4.6 System structure analysis - analysis of the internal structure of safety system

4.7 Shape and state of system and their application - describing method of safety system

4.8 Environment of system and utilization - safety system characterized by the external link

4.9 System model and utilization - expressing safety system by quantification

4.10 System classifying and application - tool for identification of safety system

Chapter 5  Principles of safety system engineering - system science theory

5.1 Overview - safety system

5.2 System information and utilization – linking safety system

5.3 System dynamics and application - expression of the evolution of safety system

5.4 System control theory and application - rules of safety system movement

5.5 Operations theory and methods - tips of safety system optimization

5.6 Fuzzy system theory and application - tool for expressing complex safety systems

5.7 Systems engineering and utilization - architecture of safety system

5.8 Safety system engineering method - guide to safe engineering practice

Chapter 6  Complex safety system approach - modern soft-system theory

6.1 Soft systems methodology - effective way to research fuzzy safety system

6.2 System self-organization theory and application - to simplify the complex safety system automatically

6.3 System extra-organization and utilization - to play the role of the external functions of safety system

6.4 Gray system theory - powerful tool for dealing with fuzzy safety system

6.5 Catastrophe theory and application - the doctrine of expressing accident suddenness

6.6 Non-linear dynamic system theory and application – mathematical models describing of complex safety system

6.7 Complex network theory and application – expression of intrinsic characteristics of complex safety system

6.8 Open complex giant system theory and application - showing integrated characteristics of the safety discipline

6.9 Utilization of complex system methodology - safety system planning approach

Chapter 7  Methods of modern safety system management - applications of system science theories

7.1 Management and safety system management methodology

7.2 Classification of safety system management approaches

7.3 Safety system management principles and rules

7.4 Framework of safety system management

7.5 Related disciplines involved in safety system management

7.6 Safety management by objectives approach

7.7 Safety system management practice

[Section three: methodology of human-machine-environment in safety system]

Chapter 8  Safety system control and simulation methods –key technology of inherent safety

8.1 System control methodology

8.2 Safety control theory methods

8.3 Methodology of safety control system design

8.4 Measurement methodology of safety control system

8.5 Methods of safety management system control

8.6 Safety simulation methods

8.7 Safety evaluation method of man-machine system

Chapter 9  Research methods of human characteristics - real embodiment of human first principle

9.1 Human, humanity and expression of personality

9.2 Key elements of human factors

9.3 Methods of describing human needs and behavior

9.4 Role of human, psychological climate and self-evaluation methods

9.5 Group people communication methods

9.6 Research methods of psychological characteristics of human safety

9.7 Review of psychological characteristics research and analysis methods in China

Chapter 10  Human factor analysis and reliability evaluation method – advanced means of unsafe behavior control

10.1 Safety ergonomics methodology

10.2 Groups human factor analysis method

10.3 Methods of inspiring activities of person

10.4 Methods of strengthening human factors management

10.5 Methods of inspiring person by leaders

10.6 Methods of psychological and capacity measurement

10.7 Methods of measurement validity and reliability and sampling

10.8 Methods of human error research

10.9 Progress in human reliability studies in recent decade

Chapter 11  Safety social science methodology - important non-quantitative study approaches to complicated safety issues

11.1 Overview of safety sociology

11.2 Methodology of safety science of law

11.3 Safety economics methodology

11.4 Methodology of safety ethics

11.5 Methodology of safety culture

[Section four: typical safety science methods]

Chapter 12  Safety education methodology - one of three strategies for accidents prevention

12.1 Safety education overview

12.2 Inner mechanism of safety education

12.3 Safety education methodology

12.4 Personal safety education methods

12.5 Collective safety education methods

12.6 Basic process of instructional design in safety education

12.7 Methods of assessing safety education performance

12.8 China's work safety training models and approaches

Chapter 13  Thinking ways of safety science - basic necessary qualities for safety theoretical studies

13.1 Innovative thinking

13.2 Directional thinking

13.3 Comprehensive analysis and thinking ways

13.4 Idealistic thinking ways

13.5 Linking thinking ways

13.6 Safety science thinking practice

Chapter 14  Comparative safety research methodology – easy thought of selecting topics in safety research

14.1 Comparative study methods

14.2 Correlation method for comparative study

14.3 Methods of safety science comparison

14.4 Branches of comparative safety science

14.5 Application of comparative safety science: comparative safety education

14.6 More practices of comparative safety science

Chapter 15 Safety logic approach - important tool for analysis of safety reasoning

15.1 Overview of scientific logic

15.2 Typical logic methodology

15.3 Typical method of reasoning to prove

15.4 Logical methods of system safety analysis

15.5 Other practices of logical method

Chapter 16  Safety historical method – good way of safety warning by historical accidents

16.1 Overview of historical method

16.2 Connotation of safety historical methodology

16.3 Methodology of safety history

16.4 Archaeological methods of safety science

16.5 Textual research practice of Chinese ancient safety ergonomics thoughts

Chapter 17  Accident statistical analysis methods - basis of modern safety management practices

17.1 Statistical methodology

17.2 Typical statistical analysis methods

17.3 Relationship between variables and independent variables and the analysis models due to statistics

17.4 Classification of variables statistical analysis according to the accidents

17.5 Basic steps of accident statistical analysis methods

17.6 Statistical algorithms and some accident examples

17.7 Cases of accident statistics in practice

Chapter 18  Safety investigation, observation and positive proving methods – useful methods of researching safety  practices

18.1 Survey methodology

18.2 Observation methods

18.3 Scientific observation methods

18.4 Experience and simulation methodology

18.5 Accident investigation and analysis methods

Chapter 19 Safety prediction, evaluation and decision-making methods - basic strategies for accident prevention and control

19.1 Forecast methodology

19.2 Evaluation methodology

19.3 Decision-making methods

19.4 Risk assessment methods

19.5 ‘Triangle’framework and the ‘4 +1’approach for public safety science and technology

19.6 ‘Three-phase approach’ for dealing toxicological events with disasters

[Section five: Applied safety science methodology]

Chapter 20 Expression methods of safety management by mathematics and mechanics - a number of ways of quantitative study of safety management

20.1 Graph theory expressions of safety management system

20.2 Safety management mechanics

20.3 Practices of using mechanics to express safety management

20.4 Accident dynamics of enterprise system

20.5 Information mechanics of safety system

Appendix

References

Postscript