Secondary socialization of andragogical content knowledge: What are the forces at work in an oil and gas safety training conference?

This study examines the larger sociological issues surrounding the standardization and institutionalization of safety training in the United States. The data consist of .MP3 audio files of professional development sessions recorded at a major international oil and gas safety conference. Qualitative content analysis is carried out using deductive and inductive techniques. Findings include that standards are built by subjective consensus and bypass empirically and philosophically based knowledge supporting adult education in safety training. The study also discusses the need for empirically based adult safety education in high risk industries respective to individual safety cultures. A number of reforms are recommended.