Sign Blindness: Why Workers Ignore Warning Signs and How to Increase Awareness

By Tyler Doupe'

Safety signs serve an incredibly important purpose: They alert employees to potential hazards or imminent danger in the workplace. Initially, these signs command attention. Workers notice them and comply with the posted directive. Over time, though, these same signs begin to blend into the background and fail to register as prominently as they once did.  This phenomenon is called sign blindness.

Although there is no “cure” for sign blindness, there are several steps that organizations can take to offset its effects and improve hazard recognition.

Counteracting sign blindness requires a basic understanding of the human mind, so we will briefly touch on the psychology behind it. From there, we will dive into a handful of best practices for offsetting the effects of sign blindness. 

How Sign Blindness Works

Sign blindness doesn’t usually happen overnight. It sets in gradually over time. It relates to a process called Selective Attention. The human brain can only process a small portion of the data it receives and tunes out the rest. As we become familiar with our surroundings, our minds begin to filter out information deemed “unnecessary.” Though the signs remain visible, they begin to lose their ability to attract our attention as effectively with each subsequent exposure.

How to Combat Sign Blindness

Fortunately, taking a proactive and strategic approach will go a long way toward counteracting the effects of sign blindness. One great strategy to mitigate sign blindness is to reduce visual clutter. Evaluate the workspace to scour for any signs that are redundant or create unnecessary visual noise and eliminate them.

The signage you identify as essential should be eye-catching, well-placed, and updated as soon as it begins to wear. When you swap out worn signs, consider changing up the colors and graphics where appropriate. This will naturally increase awareness. 

You don’t necessarily need to wait for wear and tear to mix up your signage. In fact, you’ll get better results if you don’t. You can rotate signs still in good condition to different spots with the facility to increase attention. When employees register the change in their environment, it will capture their attention much in the same way a newly placed sign does.

If at all possible, add backlights that ensure your signs are visible and eye-catching regardless of the time of day. It’s much harder to ignore a bright, well-lit sign, even if you do see it day in and day out.

It Takes More Than Signs to Keep Employees Safe on the Job

Keep in mind that you cannot rely on signs alone to get your message across. In addition to the best practices outlined above, you’ll also want to stay current on training and schedule periodic toolbox talks to reiterate the messages your signage conveys. Doing this will help to reinforce safe habits and increase understanding.   

So, there you have it. Although there is no cure for sign blindness, organizations who strategically stage their signage, rotate it frequently, and keep it in pristine condition will surely increase recognition and hazard awareness.

For more on maintaining a safe workplace, take a look at OSHAcademy Course 123: Introduction to Job Hazard Analysis.