Expansive Moment: The Building Blocks Of Psychological Safety
Jun 9, 2023
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In this episode, the podcast explores the building blocks of psychological safety, including the seven statements used to measure it and the different levels of psychological safety. The importance of feedback and constructive communication is emphasized, along with the skill of giving feedback. The podcast also discusses the relationship between psychological safety and performance, highlighting the four scenarios that can arise based on their levels. Overall, the podcast provides valuable insights on creating a psychologically safe environment.
Psychological safety is measured through seven statements and can be plotted on a graph with four scenarios: low safety/low performance, low safety/high performance, high safety/low performance, high safety/high performance.
Providing feedback in a constructive and elegant way is crucial for creating a psychologically safe environment, promoting growth, progress, and maximizing the potential of a high-performing team.
Deep dives
Building Blocks for Psychological Safety
Psychological safety is measured through seven statements that assess team dynamics, including how mistakes are handled, the ability to raise problems, acceptance of differences, willingness to take risks, ease of seeking help, and recognition of unique skills. The awareness of psychological safety often tends to be low, even when individuals believe they are creating it. The presence of psychological safety is not sufficient on its own for high performance; it is just one part of the equation. The relationship between psychological safety and performance can be plotted on a graph, with four scenarios possible: low safety and low performance leading to apathy, low safety and high performance creating anxiety, high safety and low performance resulting in comfort, and high safety and high performance achieving optimal results.
The Importance of Constructive Feedback
Being able to provide feedback in a constructive and elegant way is a vital skill in creating a psychologically safe environment. Feedback should focus on highlighting strengths and offering suggestions for improvement, rather than scolding or criticizing. Similar to addressing animals' welfare, inspiring rather than scolding leads to greater kindness. Giving thoughtful feedback and practicing emotional intelligence contributes to a psychologically safe team. Developing this skill promotes a positive vision and maximizes the potential for growth and progress while fostering a high-performing team.
In this episode, producer Sean Loots shares a moment from a previous episode where Erik Kruger discusses the building blocks for psychological safety with John Sanei.
The aim with The Expansive Moment is to provide valuable insights in 10 minutes or less.
Introduction to psychological safety measures
Seven statements used to measure psychological safety
The importance of agreement or disagreement with these statements
Different levels of psychological safety and performance
Explanation of the four scenarios: low/low, low/high, high/low, high/high
Examples and implications of each scenario (apathy, comfort, anxiety, high performance)
Feedback and constructive communication
John's personal anecdote about feedback from a friend
Emphasizing the need for elegant and ambassadorial feedback
Comparing feedback to the "Angry Vegan phenomenon."
The skill of giving feedback
Feedback as a cornerstone of creating a psychologically safe environment
The importance of practicing and developing feedback skills
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