Psychological Safety: Why It Matters So Much in the Corporate Arena
The term psychological safety was first introduced by the humanistic psychologist Carl Rogers in 1954. It was later developed by Amy Edmondson in 1999 when she applied the concept to the workplace environment.
Some of the core components of psychological safety include:
A trusting environment: All employees, at all levels, feel accepted and included as part of the team and are comfortable being themselves at work.
Speaking up: Feeling that it’s okay to question others’ ideas, including those of authority figures, as well as share one’s own ideas without fear of embarrassment or ridicule.
This might sound like a utopian work environment, and you may be wondering, is this even possible? Especially as the corporate world faces new pressures every day to innovate, deliver results, and retain talent. It’s apparent that corporate organisations invest heavily in areas such as talent acquisition and technology, while areas like psychological safety are often left behind. However, neglecting this can have a detrimental impact on overall performance.
Why Psychological Safety Matters
A 2023 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends study revealed that 83% of executives identify wellbeing as important to their organisation’s success, yet only 27% feel ready to address it. Why such a gap? If leaders know it’s important, why leave it in the background? In the meantime, businesses are losing billions through disengagement and lost productivity.
Maybe Your Workplace Lacks Psychological Safety
As a leader, it can be difficult to know with certainty whether your team feels comfortable speaking up. The culture within a workplace may be experienced very differently by employees compared to leaders.
Here are a few signs to watch out for:
Blame culture: Criticism is the first response when mistakes are made, rather than constructive problem-solving.
Perfection expected: Employees double- and triple-check their work for fear of making errors.
Quiet meetings: Team members are afraid to share their thoughts, ideas, or even ask questions.
Disengagement and staff turnover: Low engagement survey scores and high turnover rates.
For leaders and managers, this type of culture is always going to be problematic. It may take a long time before someone is brave enough to both recognise the issue and take steps to address it.
Actionable Strategies for Managers to Foster Psychological Safety
Admit when you don’t know something. This shows that it’s okay not to be perfect.
Listen and respond. When a team member raises a concern, hear them out and try to address it, people want to feel heard and valued.
Seek feedback. Since the team spends much of their time in the workplace, ask how the environment could be improved.
Acknowledge all input. Even if you disagree, show appreciation for the contribution.
Top-Down Leadership
If a leader is seen as dismissive, defensive, or reactive with blame, employees are likely to accept this as the norm. Psychological safety starts at the top, leaders’ behaviour sets the tone for what is acceptable. It trickles down from leaders to managers, and from managers to their teams.
We believe that in the not-too-distant future, psychological safety will be recognised as a core component of the workplace environment. Key decision-makers will implement wellbeing initiatives to address this gap, creating positive, long-term effects across their organisations.
