psikolog
Articles

Psychological Safety in Virtual Teams and Its Impact on Collaborative Performance Media

Authors

  • Samsidar Samsidar Universitas Islam Negeri Sulthan Thaha Saifuddin Jambi
Published September 29, 2024 pp. 36-47 doi.org/10.62872/pj.v1i3.521 CC BY-SA 4.0
PDF

Abstract

Psychological safety refers to team members’ belief that they can express ideas, provide feedback, or admit mistakes without fear of negative consequences. In virtual teams, limited nonverbal interaction and geographic dispersion challenge trust-building and collaboration. This article reviews recent literature (2020–2025) on psychological safety in virtual teams and its impact on collaborative performance. A systematic literature review was conducted using Scopus, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect, focusing on trust, knowledge sharing, and leadership variables. Findings indicate that psychological safety mediates the relationship between trust, leadership, and knowledge-sharing behaviors, enhancing team effectiveness and collaboration. Influencing factors include communication technology quality, transformational leadership, inclusive team culture, and individual self-efficacy. Virtual teams with high psychological safety demonstrate higher engagement, wider knowledge sharing, and more efficient task completion. Practical implications emphasize leadership training, reliable collaboration platforms, supportive team culture, and structured knowledge management to create psychologically safe and productive virtual teams.

Keywords

psychological safetyvirtual teamscollaborationtrustknowledge sharing

References

  1. Alami, A., Zahedi, M., & Krancher, O. (2023). Antecedents of psychological safety in agile software development teams. Inf. Softw. Technol., 162, 107267. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infsof.2023.107267.
  2. Ali, M., Soomro, M. A., & Khoso, R. A. (2025). Virtual team building for mental health: Creating psychological safety in digital environments. Review Journal of Social Psychology & Social Works, 3(3), 1082–1096. https://doi.org/10.71145/rjsp.v3i3.381
  3. Dzandu, M., Theophilus, I., & Issa, D. (2023). Exploring the relationship between personal and work characteristics of project managers and psychological safety in virtual teams. Procedia Computer Science, 219, 2067 - 2074. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2023.01.509.
Show 14 more references
  1. Edmondson, A. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350–383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999
  2. Garro Abarca, V., Palos Sanchez, P., & Aguayo Camacho, M. (2021). Virtual teams in times of pandemic: Factors that influence performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 624637. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624637
  3. Grailey, K., Murray, E., Reader, T., & Brett, S. (2021). The presence and potential impact of psychological safety in the healthcare setting: an evidence synthesis. BMC Health Services Research, 21. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-06740-6.
  4. Hao, Q., Zhang, B., Shi, Y., & Yang, Q. (2022). How trust in coworkers fosters knowledge sharing in virtual teams? A multilevel moderated mediation model of psychological safety, team virtuality, and self efficacy. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 899142. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.899142
  5. Kim, S., Lee, H., & Connerton, T. (2020). How Psychological Safety Affects Team Performance: Mediating Role of Efficacy and Learning Behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01581.
  6. Lechner, A., & Mortlock, J. (2021). How to create psychological safety in virtual teams. Organizational Dynamics, 100849. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orgdyn.2021.100849.
  7. Liang, Y., Liu, Y., & Hu, J. (2020). How psychological safety affects team performance: Mediating role of efficacy and learning behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1581. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01581
  8. Mogård, E. V., Rørstad, O. B., & Bang, H. (2023). The relationship between psychological safety and management team effectiveness: The mediating role of behavioral integration. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(1), 406. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010406
  9. Newman, A., Donohue, R., & Eva, N. (2020). Psychological safety: A systematic review of the literature. Human Resource Management Review, 30(4), 100689. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2017.01.001
  10. Patil, R., Raheja, D., Nair, L., Deshpande, A., & Mittal, A. (2023). The Power of Psychological Safety: Investigating its Impact on Team Learning, Team Efficacy, and Team Productivity. The Open Psychology Journal. https://doi.org/10.2174/18743501-v16-230727-2023-36.
  11. Paulus, P. (2023). The Role of Psychological Safety in Team Communication: Implications for Human Resource Practices. Golden Ratio of Mapping Idea and Literature Format. https://doi.org/10.52970/grmilf.v3i2.399.
  12. Rietze, S., & Zacher, H. (2024). Relations between daily stand-up meetings, work satisfaction, and team performance perceptions: the role of psychological safety, 34(5). https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2025.2508178
  13. Robinson, H., & Held, F. (2024). Psychological safety in online interdisciplinary student teams: What teachers can do to promote an effective climate for knowledge sharing, collaboration and problem-solving. Active Learning in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1177/14697874241275346
  14. Rødsjø, E., Sjølie, E., & Van Petegem, P. (2024). Psychological safety in interdisciplinary virtual student project teams: A validation study. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 14, 100413. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2024.100413

Copyright (c) 2024 Samsidar Samsidar · CC BY-SA 4.0

Similar Articles

1 2 3 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.

PJ

My Account

Submit a manuscript