Adolescent occupational safety and health in the vocational-technical environment: The relationship of organizational climate, safety awareness-concern-interest, and the characteristics of the innovation to the intention to adopt a safety curriculum

America's youth are vital to the workforce. However, many of their jobs are hazardous with a high potential for injury. In response, youth safety advocates have addressed hazards of youth employment through educational interventions. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has developed safety and health curricula focusing on the hazards of specific youth job categories.;Using “Diffusion of Innovation” (Rogers, 1995) as the study's theoretical basis, the purpose of which was to identify factors predicting the adoption potential of a safety curriculum, a survey of 200 vocational education teachers was conducted. The study evaluated the relationship of (a) organizational climate, (b) awareness, concern, and interest (ACI) in adolescent safety education, and (c) the five innovation characteristics, to (d) the intention to adopt the curriculum. A 60% response rate was obtained representing 21 states and one U.S. territory.;Violations of the assumptions of multiple regression were noted for the dependent variable of “intention to adopt” necessitating its transformation into a three categorical “adoption intent” grouping variable. Data were analyzed using canonical discriminant analysis. The first canonical discriminant function in the “ACI” model accounted for 97% of the dispersion, correctly classifying 50.4% of the original cases into predicted groups. The first function in the “innovation's characteristics” model accounted for 98% of the dispersion, correctly classifying 61.2% of the original cases. The “organization” model correctly classified 44.6% of the original cases.;Based on the theoretical model, “awareness”, “interest”, “organizational climate”, “compatibility”, “relative advantage” and “trialability” best predicted “intent to adopt”. When entered into an additional canonical discriminant analysis, these variables accounted for 99% of the dispersion, correctly classifying 62.0% of the original cases, with “compatibility” and “relative advantage” being significant predictors of “intent to adopt”. Thus, compatibility and complexity were found to be the most significant contributors to the discriminant function.;Methodological limitations of the study were identified. The study has implications for continued research into the diffusion process. Suggestions for further research are given for instrument refinement, use within different populations, and marketing considerations. Practice implications are also discussed as they effect (a) education, and (b) the practice of the community health and occupational health nurse.