Risk perception in the Costa Rican construction industry: The role of co-workers’ behavior and regional differences

Accident prevention in the construction industry depends not only on managing objective hazards but also on how workers perceive risks. In this sense, the influence of peers' behavior and regional context remain less understood. This study investigates how coworkers’ safety practices and territorial differences shape risk perceptions among Costa Rican construction workers. We collected survey data in 2024 from 194 employees across 23 sites in two Costa Rican provinces, Cartago (Central Valley) and Limón (Caribbean coast). A confirmatory factor analysis validated a second-order construct of perceived risk encompassing falls, struck-by hazards, and machinery-related risks, and OLS regressions were estimated to test the influence of social and contextual factors on perceived risk. The results indicate that coworkers’ safety behavior significantly influences individual risk awareness, consistent with social learning theories that highlight peer norms as powerful cues. In addition, regional heterogeneity also emerged as a key factor explaining differences in perceived risk: workers in Limón reported systematically lower risk perceptions than those in Cartago, underscoring the role of local safety cultures and enforcement environments. These findings suggest that effective interventions should combine peer-led initiatives with region-sensitive policies, offering new insights for advancing occupational health and safety practice.