The Effect of Port Safety Inspectors’ Leadership on Safety Behavior: The Mediating Role of Safety Climate

This study investigates the impact of port safety leadership on employees’ safety behavior and examines the mediating role of safety climate in this relationship within high-risk port operations. Drawing on survey data collected from port workers, the study employs structural equation modeling to empirically test both direct and indirect pathways of influence. The results demonstrate that port safety leadership significantly and positively affects safety behavior and safety climate, indicating that leadership not only drives individual safety actions but also shapes the broader organizational environment. Moreover, safety climate is found to significantly mediate the relationship between leadership and safety behavior, highlighting the dual pathway through which leadership contributes to enhanced safety performance. These findings provide robust evidence that both direct leadership practices and organizational safety culture are critical in promoting safe work behavior in complex and hazardous port environments.<br/> Finally, the study identifies directions for future research in the context of emerging smart ports, where automation, digital monitoring, and IoT-based safety management systems are increasingly adopted. Further investigation is needed to examine how these technological and organizational transformations interact with leadership and safety climate to influence employee safety behavior, thereby informing the development of integrated strategies for improving overall safety performance in smart port environments.