Abstract
This article develops a theory integrating psychological safety and
psychological availability within the context of human resource
development (HRD) objectives. While research on psychological safety, a
willingness to take an interpersonal risk, has blossomed over the past
two decades, no theoretical modeling has been offered with links to
psychological availability as originally proposed by Kahn (1990).
Through the employment of Dubin’s (1969) theory-building method, this
article develops the integration of psychological safety and
psychological availability with a systems framework. A literature review
is conducted to define and assess the proposed operational units within
the theoretical model focused on inputs, mediating processes, outputs,
and feedback input. Implicit voice is proposed as a feedback input that
attempts to assess the role of an individual’s prior experiences in the
system process. Dubin’s (1969) remaining steps for theory construction
are completed, up to the point of empirical research. Finally,
implications of research, theory, and practice within the field of HRD
are examined.