Workplace Belonging & Psychological Safety Flashcards

What is psychological safety as defined in organizational research?

Answer: The belief that one can speak up, take risks, and be vulnerable without fear of negative consequences

Psychological safety, as defined by Amy Edmondson, is the shared belief that a team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking without fear of punishment or humiliation.

Which researcher is most credited with popularizing the concept of psychological safety in workplace team research?

Answer: Amy Edmondson

Amy Edmondson, a Harvard Business School professor, is the leading researcher on psychological safety, particularly through her studies of hospital teams and her book 'The Fearless Organization.'

What is the primary organizational benefit of high psychological safety within teams?

Answer: Greater team learning, risk-taking, and innovation

Research consistently shows that psychological safety enables team members to share ideas and learn from mistakes, leading to greater innovation and sustained team performance.

Which of the following behaviors most undermines psychological safety on a team?

Answer: Publicly criticizing or shaming team members for mistakes

Publicly criticizing or shaming team members for errors creates a climate of fear around speaking up, directly eroding psychological safety.

In a DEI context, 'belonging' is best described as:

Answer: The feeling that one is valued, included, and able to be authentic at work

Belonging refers to the feeling that an individual is genuinely accepted, valued, and can bring their authentic self to work without masking their identity.

Which of the following is a commonly used employee survey approach for measuring belonging?

Answer: Likert-scale items such as 'I feel like I belong at this company'

Belonging is typically measured through employee engagement surveys using validated Likert-scale items that directly ask about feelings of acceptance, value, and authenticity.

Research consistently shows that employees with a high sense of belonging are more likely to:

Answer: Demonstrate higher job performance and lower turnover intent

Studies consistently link belonging to higher engagement, improved individual and team performance, and a significantly reduced likelihood of voluntarily leaving the organization.