en Occupational and Industrial Health Occupational and Industrial Health پژوهشي Original Article <div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="background:#f8f9fa"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">Background:</span></span></b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124"> Maintaining workers</span></span><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">&rsquo; safety in the workplace can be achieved by promoting protective behaviors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of protective behaviors in relation to the theoretical structures of the protection motivation theory.</span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="background:#f8f9fa"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">Methods:</span></span></b><b> </b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">This cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 paint workers in Rafsanjan city. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to assess knowledge, attitude, protective behaviors, and theoretical structures. A structural equation model was employed to investigate the impact of motivational theory structures on protective intentions and behaviors.</span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="background:#f8f9fa"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">Results:</span></span></b> The <span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">present study showed that, despite a relatively acceptable level of </span></span><span style="color:#202124">knowledge</span><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">, the status of protective behavior in painting workers was not favorable. </span></span><span style="color:#202124">Correlation tests indicated that protective behaviors had a positive relationship with knowledge, self-efficacy, and response efficacy structures, while negatively and significantly related to the perceived cost structure. (p</span>&thinsp;<span style="color:#202124"><0.05).</span><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124"> Overall, the protection motivation theory structures had acceptable goodness of fit.</span></span><span style="color:#202124"></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="background:#f8f9fa"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124">Conclusion:</span></span></b><span lang="EN"><span style="color:#202124"> It is recommended that the structures of the protection motivation theory be utilized to persuade painting workers to comply with protective behaviors. Greater emphasis should be placed on creating a sense of threat caused by the lack of protective behavior in this group.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div> Safety, Protection motivation theory, Protective behaviors, Paint, Occupational health, 151 158 http://jhehp.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-579-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Mohsen Rezaeian moeygmr2@yahoo.co.uk 100319475328460013405 0000000330700166 No Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Occupational Environmental Research Center, School of Medicine, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran. Mostafa Nasirzadeh mnasirzadeh13@yahoo.com 100319475328460013406 0000000309344697 No Department of Health Education and Promotion, School of Health, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran. Mahmood Mahbobirad mahmoodmahbobi@yahoo.com 100319475328460013407 0000000304423601 No Department of Health Education and Promotion, School of Health, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran. Hassan Ahmadinia h.ahmadinia@gmail.com 100319475328460013408 0000000270101726 No Department of Biostatistics, Occupational Environment Research Center, School of Health, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran; Department of Health Education and Promotion, School of Health, Geriatric Care Research Center, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran. Mahdi Abdolkarimi mahdi_13581@yahoo.com 100319475328460013409 0000000227812821 Yes Department of Health Education and Promotion, School of Health, Geriatric Care Research Center, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran. Alireza Taheri Fard alitfr@yahoo.com 100319475328460013410 0000000190613449 No Researcher, Occupational Environmental Research Center, Rafsanjan University of Medical Scieances, Rafsanjan, Iran.