The Fourth  Industrial Revolution and occupational health and safety: a systematic analysis of driving and restraining forces in Turkey.

Erol M., Eraslan E.

International journal of occupational safety and ergonomics : JOSE, ss.1-17, 2026 (SSCI, Scopus)

Özet

Objectives. Industry 4.0 technologies have the potential to significantly enhance occupational healthand safety (OHS) by enabling smarter, data-driven production and service systems. Despite this poten-tial, the integration of Industry 4.0 into occupational health and safety management systems (OHSMSs)remains limited in emerging economies such as Türkiye, largely due to structural, regulatory and orga-nizational barriers. Quantitative evidence explaining these barriers and their interrelationships is stillinsufficient in the existing literature. This study seeks to determine whether driving or restraining forcesdominate the adoption process and to examine the cause-effect relationships among key restrainingfactors.Methods. Fuzzy TOPSIS-based force field analysis was employed to evaluate the relative dominance ofdriving and restraining forces influencing Industry 4.0 adoption in OHS. Subsequently, fuzzy DEMATELanalysis was applied to reveal causal relationships among restraining forces. The results were validatedusing the nominal group technique and the fuzzy Delphi method to ensure robustness and expertconsensus.Results and Conclusions. Findings indicate that the primary barriers include insufficient incentives andregulations, rigid organizational structures, and policy-related challenges, while high investment costsand organizational culture also play a significant role.