Work alienation and unsafe behavior in new-generation miners: Dual mediation effects and the protective buffer of psychological capital

BackgroundWith the acceleration of coal mine intelligence transformation, new generation miners (NGM) are gradually becoming the main force of production. The correlation between their work alienation (WA) and unsafe behavior (UB) has become a core challenge of safety management.ObjectiveThis study aims to explore the influence mechanism of WA on NGM' UB and test the mediating function of organizational identification (OI) and work engagement (WE) as well as the moderating effect of psychological capital (PC).MethodsThis study takes 355 NGM from Shanxi Datuhe Coking Co., Ltd in China as a sample, adopts the structural equation model and Bootstrap method to conduct data analysis, and examines the relationship between variables and their function mechanism.ResultsWA is significantly positively correlated with UB; OI and WE independently mediate this relationship, with empirical evidence of chain mediation under generational characteristics in high-risk industrial settings. PC significantly moderates the negative impact of WA on OI and WE, and individuals with high PC can effectively buffer the negative impact of alienation.ConclusionsThe study innovatively integrates PC theory with JD-R model, revealing WA affects NGM' UB through OI and WE sequentially. PC buffers WA's negative influence on these mediators particularly in high-risk industries. Strengthening OI, enhancing WE, and cultivating miners' PC can mitigate alienation's adverse outcomes, providing strategic insights for coal mine safety management.