Applied Theatre for Health Promotion at Workplace in an Industrial Park

Abstract

The qualitative research aimed to examine the practice of Applied Theatre in order to foster safety awareness amongst workers at factories. This study adopted an action research approach and was conducted, with the assistance of 125 co- researchers, at 5 factories located in an industrial settlement in Pathumthani Province. This study employed “Drama Process” as a 3 stages intervention including: 1) building safety zones; 2) inducing to think and express opinions; and 3) having a heart-to-heart talk. Data were collected by observing and note-taking. Thematic analysis was then carried out. The results show that the workers had basic knowledge of accidents and were able to identify the major causes of accidents owing to unsafe acts and unsafe working conditions. The unsafe acts were clearly performed by the workers through the Drama Applied Theatre for Health Promotion at Workplace in an Industrial Park Assistant Professor Wannarat Rattanawarang, Ph.D. (Demography) Faculty of Public Health, Thammasat University Process activities which adequately reflected human errors, careless actions, and unawareness. Moreover, the process enabled the workers to carefully think about direct and indirect losses resulting from accidents, effortlessly yield insights into the impacts of accidents, and be keenly aware of the adverse consequences of accidents. Such attributes were compatible with Applied Theatre concepts which encourage creativity and self-reflection. The respondents joining the activities stated that the program rendered them acutely aware of workplace safety as well as workplace accidents. The Drama Process could be integrated with safety training.