Health Condition and Work Stress as Predictors of Occupational Injury Occurrence among Automobile Mechanics in Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated health condition and work stress as predictors of occupational injury occurrence among automobile mechanics in Benue State, Nigeria. Two research questions guided the study, and two null hypotheses were tested at the .05 level of significance. The study adopted a correlational survey research design. The population comprised 328 registered automobile mechanics operating in 121 mechanic workshops in Benue State. A census sampling technique was adopted, and 313 properly completed copies of the questionnaire (a 95.4% response rate) were used for analysis. Data were collected using a valid, structured Predictors of Occupational Injuries Questionnaire (POIQ). Data were analysed using simple linear regression. The findings revealed that health condition had a very weak positive relationship with occupational injury occurrence (β = .055, t = .975, p = .330) and did not significantly predict occupational injury occurrence. Work stress had a low positive relationship with occupational injury occurrence (β = .171, t = 3.065, p = .002) and significantly predicted occupational injury occurrence. The study concluded that while automobile mechanics' health condition was not a significant predictor of occupational injury occurrence, work stress significantly predicted occupational injury occurrence among automobile mechanics in Benue State. Based on the findings, it was recommended that mechanic workshop owners regulate workload – for instance, by capping daily working hours and introducing scheduled rest breaks between repair tasks – to reduce work stress, while occupational safety agencies strengthen stress-management and
workplace-safety programmes for automobile mechanics.