VR-Based Safety Training Program for High-Rise Construction Integrating Kolb’s Learning Model and the Behaviorist Learning Theory

Abstract

Safety in high-rise construction remains an issue that raises concerns in the industry across the globe. Since the industry is labor-intensive, construction workers play a vital role in enhancing the safety of construction sites. Yet, existing training programs are increasingly being criticized for the lack of trainees’ engagement and their emerging sense of exclusion, leading to wide advocacy for the incorporation of VR technology in safety training. Accordingly, this research aims to develop VR-based safety training for the construction of the high-rise buildings using a novel training methodology that is based on the constructivist experiential learning and behaviorist learning theories. The results of this pilot study revealed that the framework has a significant potential in enhancing the learning outcomes of the trainees. However, considerable attention should be given to overcoming controller lags, the provision of personalized feedback, the substitution of AI-based to human-based feedback voice-overs, and the provision of a pre-training theoretical session to further enhance the learning outcomes of the trainees.