– The purpose of this paper is to empirically develop a safety performance (SP) framework for evaluating the various leading and lagging indicators of SP in Saudi public schools.
– A comprehensive review of the safety and performance evaluation literature enabled the formulation of the constructs, factors and items that underpinned a conceptual SP evaluation framework. The research method involved a conceptual framework review and refinement process with 18 experts, followed by a questionnaire survey of 200 respondents from Saudi public schools. The final form of the SP evaluation framework was determined through a rigorous statistical analysis process, including exploratory factor analysis to uncover the underlying framework architecture from a relatively large set of items, and then the application of the partial least squares method to confirm framework adequacy and to assign loading coefficients.
– The developed SP evaluation framework for Saudi schools included five constructs, namely, safety management and leadership, safety learning and training, safety policy, procedures, and processes, workforce safety culture and SP.
– The developed SP evaluation framework is proposed for implementation by the Saudi Ministry of Education to better monitor and manage school safety in the future.
– This SP evaluation framework is one of the first to holistically evaluate SP in schools, particularly in the Saudi Arabian context.
