Associations between three-dimensional safety rejection sensitivity and coal miners’ safety performance: A moderated mediation model of self-efficacy and organizational psychological safety

Background Coal mining is a high-risk industry that faces persistent safety challenges, with workers ’ psychological factors and unsafe behaviors playing critical roles. Prior research has underscored organizational management and safety climate, but has insufficiently explored negative interpersonal traits such as safety rejection sensitivity (SRS). Objective This study integrates a three-dimensional SRS into coal mine safety research, validates its adapted scale and tests a moderated mediation model of SRS-SP via SE with OPS as moderator. Methods We administered a cross-sectional questionnaire to Chinese frontline coal miners. A total of 560 questionnaires were distributed, and 465 valid responses (81.6% effective rate) were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results All three SRS dimensions showed significant negative statistical associations with SP; rejection anticipation displayed the strongest negative predictive linkage (β = −0.16, p < 0.01). SE exhibited partial mediating associations within the SRS-SP linkage across all three dimensions, with estimated indirect effects ranging from −0.161 to −0.199 (p < 0.01). OPS displayed a positive moderating association for the SE-SP relationship (β = 0.064, p < 0.05), and this moderating linkage appeared more pronounced under high-risk underground working conditions. Conclusions This study addresses SRS's theoretical application lag and proposes an integrated framework for psychological determinants of coal miners ’ SP using cross-sectional evidence, with practical implications: reducing SRS via training, bolstering SE via mentoring, and cultivating psychological safety to improve SP.