Self‐esteem is one of the most studied constructs in psychology. It has been measured with a variety of methods and instruments. Although Rosenberg's (1965) self‐report scale is one of the most widely used, empirical evidence on factor validity of this scale is somewhat contradictory, with either 1 or 2 factors. The results of this study suggest the existence of a global self‐esteem factor underlying responses to the scale, although the inclusion of method effects is needed to achieve a good model fit.

This study examined the architecture of the relationships between components of organizational safety climate, including employee attitudes to safety issues and perceptions of the work environment, and related this to self-reported levels of safety activity. Data were collected from a large multinational manufacturing organization by questionnaire. A total of 915 valid questionnaires were returned and formed the basis for structural equation modelling and subsequent analyses. These data showed that a common structure, or architecture, of attitudes to safety issues and perceptions of the work environment could be constructed that explained levels of safety activity. The strength of employees' attitudes with regard to safety management played a pivotal role in this model through both direct and indirect paths. This is consistent with earlier findings on the importance of management commitment in organizations with well developed safety cultures. An examination of the differences between plants/sites showed that employees differed in their attitudes to safety issues, such as the management of safety and communication, and in their perceptions of workplace hazards. It is intended that this model be further utilized within the organization under study as a basis for monitoring safety performance and planned improvements in safety.