What are three key factors that contribute to psychologically safe teams?
“Equality in distribution of conversational turn-taking” and “high average social sensitivity” were two specific norms pointed out in the article. I suppose a third factor could be derived from one of the definitions of psychological safety mentioned - “interpersonal trust and mutual respect”.
Evaluate, with details, a previous professional setting (or team) you were in with regards to psychological safety.
When I last worked at the bedside, I was on an exhausting unit with a patient population known for both being very ill and behaviorally difficult. Teamwork is expected on any hospital floor, but on that unit if ever I needed a hand, I could count on folks jumping to my aid if they were free. I don’t doubt that our “what is said in the med room stays in the med room” unoffical policy as well as our breakroom “safe space” contributed to our camaraderie. We also had a manager who set a great example of being comfortable sharing vulnerable aspects of her personal life. I’m still in regular contact with more folks from that team than my current one even though I left four years ago.
What impact do teams that operate with a high degree of psychological safety have on their company and the team members?
These teams tend to perform at a higher level. Not only is that a direct benefit to the company’s return on investment in their employees, but I don’t think it would be a stretch to presume that these employees are retained at a higher rate relative to equally proficient employeres on psychologically unsafe teams.
Things I want to know more about
*The article identified some factors that contribute to psychologically safe team, but other than the one example given, how successful was Google at changing behaviours so that less safe teams became safer?