Promoting safety leadership in higher education: The role of principal investigators

Research teams have unique power dynamics with the academic futures of graduate students and research staff greatly dependent on their principal investigator (PI). Hence, PIs are essential in challenging and overcoming old assumptions and in moving universities towards a strong, positive safety culture. However, little is understood about how to develop PIs’ engagement in safety leadership. This research provides insights into what effective PI safety leadership entails and the factors that either foster or hinder PIs’ engagement in safety leadership.