The Impact of Psychological Safety on Retention: Realising Mitigation Potential in Organisational Crisis

Abstract

An organisational crisis is looming across multiple Western militaries. Over the last several years, commands have struggled to meet their objectives in recruiting and retention. The inability to dissuade voluntary turnover of these service members presents both a loss in the financial capital committed and, more detrimentally, a loss in experiential knowledge across an organisation. This loss of experiential knowledge is not just a statistic; it is a potential blow to the very core of military effectiveness.  

This research examines the mitigating potential of psychological safety’s influence on retention. Underpinned by theory and established literature, the study formed five central propositions to interrogate the research question. Through the development of the research model, each proposition was then assessed in a progressive exploratory study. 

The research findings establish the mitigating presence of psychological safety’s mediating influence on the psychological climate. Within the established servant leader and retention relationship, the psychological climate is seen to moderate the core mediating mechanisms of team cohesion, job satisfaction, and embeddedness with their improvement directly related to improved retention rates. These findings were found to be legitimate and applicable across the assessed subgroup populations.  

The article concludes with recommendations, derived from this research, that allow for the desired organisational change through minor behavioural adjustments at all levels of the military. By creating a psychological sense of safety among service members, mitigation of organisational retention crises may be realised.