The Challenge of Psychological Safety

What is Psychological Safety?

Psychological safety refers to the comfort and confidence employees feel in expressing themselves without fear of negative consequences. It’s a state where workers feel they can voice their concerns, ideas, and feedback openly.

Why Is It So Hard to Implement?

Ironically, the primary obstacle isn’t convincing people of its importance. Most management and employees alike acknowledge the benefits of a psychologically safe environment. The real challenge lies in transforming these acknowledgements into actionable, sustainable company policies and ingrained practices.

Enter Organisational Psychotherapy

This is where organisational psychotherapy proves invaluable. Unlike typical corporate initiatives that may address surface issues, organisational psychotherapy delves into the core attitudes, behaviours, and cultural elements that obstruct the realisation of psychological safety, and other beneficial ideas too.

How Does OP Work?

Organisational psychotherapy helps organisations identify their underlying cultural issues, issues that block the establishment of a psychologically safe environment. After enabling the organisation to surface and reflect on these issues, organisational psychotherapy invites the organisation to tackle them head-on. Methods range from individual counselling to group interventions or even comprehensive organisational talk therapy.

How Is It Different?

Standard corporate initiatives usually involve implementing new policies or reworking existing ones. However, if the underlying issues aren’t addressed, these new policies often fall flat. Organisational psychotherapy invites organisations to focus on root causes – their implicit shared assumptions and beliefs – rather than surface symptoms, offering a more enduring solution.

Ensuring Sustainability

Sustainability is another critical component of organisational psychotherapy. It doesn’t just introduce changes; it helps these changes become embedded in company culture. By addressing the root causes and focusing on methods that provide long-lasting results, it avoids the pitfalls of short-lived corporate initiatives.

Summary

Psychological safety is a “good idea” many companies strive for but few attain. Organisational psychotherapy offers a path to not just achieving this ideal but making it a durable part of a company’s culture. Through tailored methods that get to the heart of the issues, this approach catalyses sustainable organisational changes.