Motivation just might be the secret sauce in workplace safety. Even with good training and sensible rules and procedures, the overall effectiveness of a safety program depends to a large degree on how employees are motivated. And recent research suggests that behavior could be more affected by external catalysts than we realize.

A professor at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School has discovered that it’s possible to influence people’s actions simply by displaying a quote. The study focuses on ethical behavior and finds that people are less likely to lie to someone if they’ve recently been exposed to an ethically motivational message. In short, reading motivating messages can act as a cue to our subconscious to alter our behavior.

This research joins a growing body of literature that suggests people can be subtly enticed to perform better by displaying motivational quotes. In one high-profile example, author Jonah Keri notes in his book The Extra 2% that the Tampa Bay Rays use motivational posters to get players to reach the full extent of their talent on the ball diamond.

No firm conclusions can be drawn from this research for the safety industry, but there are intriguing implications for what this could mean for safety performance. If motivational quotes have an effect of ethical behavior and physical performance, there’s reason to believe they could also affect safety behavior. Safety posters won’t rectify unsafe actions on their own, but they can encourage workers to better follow safety training and guidelines.

Many in the safety industry already use some form of poster to indirectly intervene in unsafe behavior before it occurs. This research is an opportunity to reinvigorate your safety posters and refocus on their potentially motivational effects for working safely.

In addition to the usual best practices for safety posters, the following factors could contribute to your posters’ effectiveness:

• Use specific language. Any safety communication should be easy to understand and act on, and safety messages should focus on specific behaviors.
• Stay positive. People find positive messages more aspirational and uplifting than negative ones. Whenever possible, say “Do this!” rather than “Don’t do that.”
• Rotate regularly. We don’t know how much complacency (or another state of mind) will dilute the effect of this message, so keep it fresh by rotating the motivational messages on a regular basis.

Keep in mind that employee motivation isn’t an exact science and that posters are only one piece of the puzzle. Without explanation, training or a full understanding of the message, a poster won’t be as powerful as it could be and could even be interpreted incorrectly. The specifics of your worksite and safety culture should be taken into consideration and you may need to experiment to find the right motivational messages. But if it leads to safer behaviors then the effort is worth it.