6.1 Introduction - What is safety?
Safety can be seen as an extension of a person's basic instinct for survival. We are all born with certain instincts, or reflex actions, such as pulling a hand away from a hot object. Beyond these instinctive reflex actions we develop other survival behaviour that is based on a number of learning sources. These may include the beliefs our parents impose on us, our own experiences, stories we hear, and our teachers, to name but a few.
These learned behaviours we call "common sense". The problem that arises is that most of us believe we all should have the same common sense, or understanding of what is dangerous and what is not. In fact we all have varying learning experiences and therefore varying perceptions of common sense.
What happens when there is disagreement on what is the common sense thing to do? In these circumstances it would be appropriate to ask all concerned if they can recall the experience or teaching that has led to the particular common sense belief. In asking such a question, and listening to the answers, there is a good opportunity to learn from others' experiences and therefore extend our own knowledge. Often reasonable agreement can be reached about which common sense to apply from the questioning process.
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