Researchers examined injury data from 171 firefighters from a major midwestern U.S. city over a 12-year period and found that certain personality traits, including introversion, were significantly related to higher injury rates on the job.

Also, female firefighters reported 33 percent more injuries than male firefighters in the study by Hui Liao, B.A., Richard D. Arvey, Ph.D., and Richard J. Butler, Ph.D., of the University of Minnesota and Steven M. Nutting, M.A., of the City of Minneapolis.

The researchers say the higher injury rate for female fighters may be due to cultural influences.

"Within male firefighters, there may be a strong cultural norm for not reporting minor injuries because it may be viewed as a sign of weakness," say the authors. "For female firefighters, this norm might be different."

The finding that personality traits such as introversion were related to higher injury rates may be the result of introverts being less likely to call for assistance.

"Firefighters perform more safely and effectively if they cooperate well with each other," said the researchers. "Therefore, those who are more reluctant to interact with team members may seek less help from coworkers during an emergency, thereby exposing themselves to greater risks."

Also related to personality characteristics, the study found that firefighters who tended to ignore safety rules and regulations not only had accidents more frequently but also suffered more severe injuries, while conscientious firefighters performed more safely on the job.

The researchers also examined the amount of time spent off the job recovering from injuries. Older firefighters took longer to recover from injuries than did younger firefighters, and those with less firefighting experience suffered more severe injuries than those with more experience.

However, what surprised the researchers was the finding that after an injury, married female firefighters returned to work the earliest, followed by unmarried male, unmarried female and married male firefighters.

Fire companies may assign working mothers to the least risky tasks when fighting a fire, say the authors, making them less likely to experience certain types of severe injuries.

Another explanation, according to the researchers, is that married female firefighters may be more cautious than unmarried female firefighters and therefor less likely to be exposed to certain injury risks.

The researchers say the study results have implications for other occupations that involve life-threatening risks that may lead to effective workplace safety interventions and a reduction in injury-related costs.

(Reference: "Correlates of Work Injury Frequency and Duration Among Firefighters," Hui Liao, Richard D. Arvey, and Richard J. Butler, University of Minnesota and Steven M. Nutting, City of Minneapolis, Minnesota; Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, Vol. 6, No. 3.)

Editor's Note: Full text of the article is available at this URL.)

[Contact: Hui Liao, David Partenmeimer]

17-Jul-2001