Factors affecting farm safety practices

In spite of safer equipment and increased numbers of safety education programs, farm accidents continue to occur at alarming rates. The purpose of this study was to identify the safety practices used by farmers and to determine what factors influenced the use of those safety practices. A random sample of 154 farm operators in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, was interviewed regarding their safety practices, and a safety index score was derived from their answers. Stepwise multiple regression was used to determine the relationship between the safety index score and the following variables: years involved in farming, acres cultivated, age, education level, income level, involvement in a farm accident, and participation in a farm safety program. Participation in a farm safety program, more acres cultivated, and higher income were all significantly related to higher safety index scores. The authors recommend that farm safety program directors target operators of smaller farms and operators with lower income levels for future programs, as well as that increased emphasis be placed on farm safety education in general.