How does psychological safety foster employee performance? A serial multiple mediation of job crafting and thriving

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to explore the underlying mechanism of the relationship between psychological safety and performance. Design/methodology/approach A serial multiple mediation model that explains the impact of psychological safety on performance via job crafting and thriving at work was proposed and tested using PROCESS macro (Model 6). Data were collected from 320 employees at three different large Korean organizations. Findings The results of this study found that job crafting and thriving at work sequentially mediate the relationship between psychological safety and performance. However, the direct effect of psychological safety on performance was found to be nonsignificant. Put differently, psychological safety is unrelated to performance independent of the effects of job crafting and thriving at work. Originality/value The present study theoretically contributes to psychological safety research by proposing and testing a serial mediation model that explores the underlying mechanism of the relationship between psychological safety and performance in detail. Practically, this study informs managers about the importance of ensuring a psychologically safe workplace environment and encouraging employees' proactive behaviors to enhance their performance and ability to thrive at work.