Which characteristic is essential in the concept of system safety?

The essential characteristic of system safety is that it involves risk assessment and management. This aspect is crucial because system safety aims to identify, evaluate, and control hazards throughout the lifecycle of a system. By continuously assessing risks, organizations can implement appropriate measures to mitigate them, which contributes to creating a safer work environment.

Effective risk assessment and management involve analyzing potential hazards, determining their likelihood and impact, and developing strategies to reduce risks to acceptable levels. This proactive approach saves lives, protects property, and ensures compliance with safety regulations. It also fosters a culture of safety within organizations, prompting ongoing vigilance and responsiveness to safety concerns.

The other options do not represent the core principle of system safety. Initiating safety measures only after a mishap occurs is fundamentally reactive and not in line with the proactive nature of system safety. Limiting the study of system safety to only engineers and safety personnel overlooks the multidisciplinary approach needed for comprehensive safety management, which can include various stakeholders. Conducting safety assessments exclusively in a laboratory setting disregards the dynamic and diverse nature of real-world environments where risks can manifest differently.