Preventing Falls with Pink Walls, London.
Nobel Prize winner Professor Thaler demonstrated in his book ‘Nudge’ how nudging can help people to exercise better self-control, and this is precisely what Cowry did with London’s Shell HQ, reducing unsafe behaviours by over 80%. But this was as much about enhancing staff wellbeing and engagement as it was cutting risk.
“Because it’s such a high-profile scheme, Overbury wanted a genuinely innovative - if unconventional - approach that could move the dial” says Cowry’s Ziba Goddard.
“It was an admittedly left-field decision in a sector not known for liking change, but nudge theory had started to gain status and momentum, and once we visited the site a few times and explained some of the practical theory it was possible to plan some clear outcomes.”
We saw in this case study covered in Chapter 14, how important it was to start the project with a behavioural audit observing the unsafe shortcuts were being undertaken when working at height or during material movements. Habitual patterns of unsafe behaviour would not be broken by the previous campaigns such as posters warning of the dangers.
It was a bold idea and a series of small prompts that help change unsafe behaviours while working at height reducing it by 82% in just 12 weeks. And it didn’t require large financial investment. The Cowry team continue to apply behavioural science to reduce unsafe behaviour in construction with the aim of preventing accidents, and ultimately saving lives
Preventing Falls with Pink Walls Radio 4.
And here are some further links that bring to life how colour can affect our mood and behaviour across the world!
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20150402-do-colours-really-change-our-mood
