“New” Blame Culture: How Investigators Lose Their Way
A no-blame culture encourages workers to report mistakes or incidents openly without fear of punishment, aiming to focus on learning and improvement rather than assigning fault. However, a 2023 study published in Safety Science exposes a major problem with many current incident investigations: the rise of “new” blame.
The study revealed that in a new-blame culture, investigators often avoid any real scrutiny into a worker’s actions. This means that critical human factors, how workers interact with the system, are missed, and as a result, meaningful organizational learning is severely limited.
In one simulated interview from the study, instead of asking a worker why they bypassed a safety guard, the investigator quickly concluded that “the equipment design must have been unclear,” never probing into the worker’s choices, pressures, or assumptions, and completely missed the human factors issues that triggered the incident.
Interview Techniques: New-Blame Culture vs. No-Blame Culture
Let’s take a look at a comparison of a new-blame interview with a no-blame interviewing technique, the TapRooT®’s 12-Step Interview Process.
| Comparison Point | New-Blame Interview | No-Blame – 12-Step Process |
| Preparation | Leading questions. Assumptions are made early. E.g., “The paperwork was confusing, right?” | Little to no preparation. The investigator has vague goals and reactive questions. |
| Approach | Investigator avoids asking probing questions about human actions (fear of seeming accusatory). Focus shifts to blaming paperwork, tools, or policies. | Investigator builds trust and sets a non-threatening tone, then methodically explores the witness’s experience without jumping to conclusions. |
| Question Style | Surface-level. Misses crucial human factors. Only obvious or physical evidence is discussed. | Open-ended, memory-enhancing questions. E.g., “Tell me everything you remember from the start of the shift.” |
| Detail Gathering | Investigator bias shapes the interview. Tends to confirm pre-existing narratives (“new blame”). | Deep, rich detail from witness’s perspective. Investigator explores timeline, senses, thoughts, and sequence of action. |
| Bias Control | Gaps and inconsistencies. Important contextual evidence was lost. | Structured process helps minimize interviewer bias. Information is documented without filtering or early judgment. |
| Evidence Collection | Gaps and inconsistencies. Important contextual evidence lost. | Thorough documentation of verbal and non-verbal cues, cross-checked with other evidence. |
| Outcome | Investigation reinforces superficial fixes. Learning is limited. Future risks remain hidden. | Investigation uncovers full systemic and human factors. Stronger corrective actions and meaningful organizational learning. |
By applying structured techniques like building rapport, encouraging detailed memory recall, verifying notes, and updating investigative timelines (SnapCharT®), the 12-step method systematically reduces the cognitive biases and conversational traps (like new blame) that “Safety Science” warns about.
In short, “Safety Science” proves that without a disciplined, structured process like the 12-Step Interview Process, incident investigations easily fall into surface-level, non-productive patterns. The process ensures that investigators gather deeper, richer, more actionable information, leading to better incident understanding and truly effective corrective actions.
Learn More About Building a No-Blame Culture with Better Investigations
Sharpen your investigative skills by registering for the TapRooT® Evidence Collection and Interviewing Course. The course is designed to help you gather facts, not assumptions. Grounded in the proven TapRooT® Root Cause Analysis System and aligned with ASTM International Standards, this course equips you to confidently handle every step of evidence collection.
You’ll learn how to prepare investigation kits, manage scenes, document findings, and conduct interviews using the powerful 12-Step TapRooT® Interview Process. From decoding nonverbal cues to building your emotional intelligence, this training goes far beyond basic questioning; it’s about becoming a more confident, capable, and credible investigator.
Whether you’re starting out or looking to refine your approach, this course offers practical tools, expert instruction, and real-world exercises you can immediately put to use. Join us!
