What is psychological safety and how does it impact team dynamics?
Psychological safety is an important concept in team development, and it’s arguably the foundation of any productive team. For a group of people to work well together, all members need to feel that they can express themselves honestly without fear of being judged by others.
By creating an environment where people are able to ask for help, share suggestions informally, and challenge the status quo without fear of negative consequences, organisations are more likely to innovate and adapt to change quickly. With the pandemic fundamentally changing the way we work and interact as teams, this need for agility and innovation has become increasingly important.
Project Oxygen – breathing life into teams
It’s no great secret that good team interactions can have a profoundly positive effect. In 2015, Google shared the culmination of two years of research (and more than 200 team interviews) on the subject of what makes a good team.
At the outset, they were pretty confident that they would “find the perfect mix of individual traits and skills necessary for a stellar team”. What they actually concluded was that who is on a team matters less than how the team members interact, structure their work, and view their contributions.
Google shared their recipe for a successful team with the wider world:
- Psychological safety: Can we take risks on this team without feeling insecure or embarrassed?
- Dependability: Can we count on each other to do high quality work on time?
- Structure & clarity: Are goals, roles, and execution plans on our team clear?
- Meaning of work: Are we working on something that is personally important for each of us?
- Impact of work: Do we fundamentally believe that the work we’re doing matters?
The findings of Google’s Oxygen project were reinforced by Patrick Lecioni’s book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, which outlines the causes of team dysfunctionality as fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, inattention to results, and – arguably the most important – absence of trust, which Lecioni highlights at the launchpad for all of the dysfunctions.
What is psychological safety?
When psychologists talk about psychological safety, they’re referring to a sense of shared vulnerability. Being part of a psychologically safe environment means that people can collaborate and express ideas, emotions, and opinions comfortably. Psychological safety is part trust and part team-building, and creating a positive culture is absolutely essential.
Research carried out by management consultant McKinsey in 2021 also reinforces the importance of a positive team climate. They found that working in a team where people value one another’s contributions, care about each other’s well-being, and have input into how the team carries out its work is the most important driver of psychological safety. Yet this kind of collaboration doesn’t always come naturally, especially in a world where everyone is constantly busy.
ORSC and psychological safety
Organisation and Relationship Systems Coaching (ORSC) – an innovative and powerful coaching model – was born out of its founder’s extensive experience in clinical social work, family systems therapy, business consulting, and dispute resolution, coupled with her co-founder’s experience as a psychologist.
At its core, the ORSC philosophy focuses on the importance of ‘relationship systems intelligence’ – the interaction between an interdependent group of people, sharing a common identity or function. Relationship systems intelligence moves beyond emotional intelligence (the relationship with oneself) and social intelligence (our relationships with others) to focus on the relationship with the group, team or system. In short, ORSC gives people the concepts, skills and tools to work more effectively with others – to build that increasingly important sense of psychological safety and trust.
Why fostering a positive team culture is vital for individual, team, and organisational development
When we can make the paradigm shift, improving Relationship Systems Intelligence catalyses the capacity of the group to move beyond the personal, to a powerfully productive group identity. The result is improved employee engagement, retention, performance goals attainment, and overall happiness at work.
In fact, those who lack this insight may experience dysfunctional or toxic communication patterns, low morale, poor conflict resolution, low productivity, confusing communication, or poor team synergy. In a rapidly changing world, where employees are increasingly working remotely and businesses must evolve rapidly to remain viable, leaders can ill afford to ignore the impact of team dynamics.
Find out more about ORSC or book one of our courses.
