Cognitive distraction has been widely recognized as a contributor to unsafe behavior, yet its underlying mechanisms among construction workers remain insufficiently understood. To fill this gap, this study examined the effect of cognitive distraction on construction workers’ unsafe behaviors by exploring the mediating role of hazard perception and the moderating role of cognitive load.
We collected 324 valid questionnaires from frontline construction workers using a multi-wave survey research design. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical regression analysis were utilized to analyze the data.
The findings revealed that: (1) cognitive distraction was positively associated with unsafe behavior, (2) hazard perception mediated the relationship between cognitive distraction and unsafe behavior, (3) cognitive load amplified the detrimental effect of cognitive distraction on unsafe behavior (β = 0.211, p < 0.001). It also significantly strengthened the protective effect of hazard perception against unsafe behavior (β = −2.384, p < 0.001), suggesting a risk compensation effect, and (4) Multi-group analysis further revealed that cognitive distraction more strongly increased unsafe behaviors among older and more experienced workers, whereas hazard perception played a stronger protective role in these groups.
The primary theoretical contribution of this work lies in elucidating the mechanism and boundary conditions of how cognitive distraction influences unsafe behavior by incorporating hazard perception and cognitive load as critical factors. Practically, the results offer clear implications for safety management. Under high cognitive load, minimizing distractions or enhancing workers’ hazard perception can significantly reduce the risk of unsafe behavior.
