Several different approaches to achieve safety are in common use, and examples are accident investigations (AI), risk analysis (RA), and safety management systems (SMS). The meaning of these concepts and their practical applications vary quite a lot, which might cause confusion. A summary of definitions is presented. A general comparison is made of application areas and methodology. A proposal is made how to indicate parameters of variation. At one end of the scale there are organisations, which are highly organised in respect to safety. At the other end are small companies with informal safety routines. Although the three concepts differ in a number of respects, there are many links between them which is illustrated in a model. A number of relations have been described mainly concerned with more advanced organisations. Behind the practical safety work, there are varying sets of more or less explicit explanations and theories on safety and accident causation. Depending on the theory applied, the relations between approaches can be more or less clear and essential. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier B.V.