When leaders cultivate psychological safety, teams and organizations progress through four successive stages, explains Dr. Timothy R. Clark, founder and CEO of global leadership training organization LeaderFactor.
The Four Stages model outlines how psychological safety manifests and evolves within a team. It emphasizes that psychological safety is not simply “on” or “off” but is a complex, multi-layered dynamic that changes as the team progresses.
What is “psychological safety”?
Psychological safety at work lies in the capability of leaders to create an environment where employees feel included and encouraged to contribute their best ideas, without being afraid of retaliation, punishment or embarrassment, according to Dr. Timothy R. Clark.
Source: The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety by Dr Tim Clark
- Inclusion Safety – members feel safe to belong to the team. They are comfortable being present, do not feel excluded, and feel like they are wanted and appreciated.
- Learner Safety – members are able to learn through asking questions. Team members here may be able to experiment, make (and admit) small mistakes, and ask for help.
- Contributor Safety – members feel safe to contribute their own ideas, without fear of embarrassment or ridicule. This is a more challenging state, because volunteering your own ideas can increase the psychosocial vulnerability of team members.
- Challenger Safety – members can question others’ (including those in authority) ideas or suggest significant changes to ideas, plans, or ways of working.
According to the model:
- When a team member’s experience of psychological safety is at a different “stage, it can lead to discord.
- To mitigate this, it is essential to enhance the psychological safety for the entire team.
