Exploring the limits of psychological safety

Summary

In this article, Eldor, Hodor and Cappelli (2023) explore the complex interplay between psychological safety climate and work performance, specifically focusing on routine tasks. Psychological safety climate is traditionally viewed positively, fostering an environment where employees feel secure taking interpersonal risks, crucial for innovation and learning. However, the paper hypothesizes that this benefit may not extend universally, particularly to routine tasks, where high levels of psychological safety can be detrimental.

Two key hypotheses are proposed:

Hypothesis 1: Psychological safety climate has a nonlinear relationship with in-role performance of routine tasks.