Abstract:  To maintain workplace safety, it is important to improve employees’ safety behavior. However, the depletion of limited self-control resources may result in an impaired self-control capacity, which in turn results in unsafe behavior. Based on Ego Depletion Model, the purpose of the current study is to explore the resources of ego depletion, the negative effect of ego depletion on safety behavior, and the countermeasures of ego depletion effect. Specifically, the current studies will explore the ways in which self-controls job demands and abusive supervision negatively influence employees’ safety behavior through depletion; and the two possible countermeasures that may overcome the effect of ego depletion by examining the moderating effect of trait self-control ability and automatic safety motivation. In addition, the current research will use heart rate variability (HRV) as electrophysiological index of self-control ability and ego depletion. Flied study, experimental study as well as electrophysiological measures will be used to test these research questions above. This research helps to understand why unsafe behaviors occur at workplace through a limited self-control recourse perspective, thereby providing novel insight into safety behavior improve intervention programs.

Key words:  safety performance, ego depletion, self-control, automatic process