Psychological safety as a predictor of acute stress, well-being and burnout in health and social care workers : a predictive correlational study

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Cogan, Nicola and Smith, Martin and Deakin, Karen (2026) Psychological safety as a predictor of acute stress, well-being and burnout in health and social care workers : a predictive correlational study. Behavioral Sciences, 16 (3). 418. ISSN 2076-328X (https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16030418)

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Abstract

Background: Health and social care workers (HSCWs) experience high levels of stress, burnout and emotional strain. Psychological safety is increasingly recognised as a protective factor, yet limited research has examined how individual psychological safety and team psychological safety jointly contribute to mental health outcomes in frontline care environments. Methods: A total of 821 HSCWs completed validated measures assessing individual psychological safety (NPSS), team psychological safety (TPSS), well-being, burnout and acute stress. Correlational analyses and hierarchical regression models were used to evaluate the unique and shared contributions of individual and team psychological safety to each outcome. Results: Both NPSS and TPSS were significantly associated with well-being, burnout and acute stress. Team psychological safety emerged as the strongest predictor of burnout and acute stress, accounting for substantial additional variance beyond individual psychological safety, with increases in explained variance ranging from 0.14 to 0.16. For well-being, NPSS (β = 0.38) and TPSS (β = 0.36) were both significant predictors. TPSS demonstrated large effects for burnout (β = 0.67) and acute stress (β = 0.72). Conclusions: Psychological safety plays a central role in the mental health of HSCWs. Team-based psychological safety was particularly influential in protecting against burnout and acute stress, while individual neuroceptive safety remained important for supporting overall well-being. Strengthening both individual and team-level psychological safety may enhance resilience and reduce psychological risk within health and social care settings. Implications: Incorporating NPSS and TPSS within workforce assessment may support early identification of psychological vulnerability, inform trauma-informed organisational interventions and promote more resilient, supportive workplace cultures.

ORCID iDs

Cogan, Nicola ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0861-5133, Smith, Martin and Deakin, Karen ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3080-7756;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)