Understanding the Antecedents of Role Stressors in the Safety Professional

The purpose of this study was to identify significant sources and predictor variables of role conflict and role ambiguity in the safety professional specific to the manufacturing sector. The study resulted in 442 returned surveys that measured the following variables: role conflict, role ambiguity, perceived organizational ethics, perceived organizational support, formalization, reporting structure, autonomy, number of roles, experience, and gender. Results indicated that average role conflict and role ambiguity scores were significantly higher for respondents from decentralized organizations. In addition, average role conflict and role ambiguity scores were significantly higher from respondents in nonformalized roles. Role ambiguity significantly decreased as years of experience increased, whereas role conflict scores did not significantly differ with years of experience. The prediction equations accounted for 25% of the variability in role conflict and 54% of the variability in role ambiguity. Organizations that incorporate strategies to minimize the sources of role conflict and role ambiguity will reduce the associated consequences to the organization and the individual. Implications for internal Employee Assistance Program providers are discussed.