Creating a sense of belonging is an important part of the efforts of many employers to create a safe and inclusive working environment. Unfortunately, it proves to be difficult to bring to life. It requires a very deliberate and focused approach of the employer as well as the active engagement of the employees. Yet, getting this right is extremely important.
Self-Determination Theory: relatedness as one of our three psychological needs.
You may have heard of the Self-Determination Theory (Edward Deci en Richard M. Ryan) that deals with people’s growth tendencies and needs. Part of this theory is a description of the three basic psychological needs we all have: (i) autonomy, (ii) competence and (iii) relatedness. Relatedness is the need to form strong relationships or bonds with other people. We all want to be an accepted member of a group. This includes our co-workers. Please take a moment to let this sink in: a sense of belonging, also in the work place, is one of the (only) three basic psychological needs all people have.
Profound impact on individuals, team dynamics and psychological safety.
People who feel they belong, experience positive emotions such as happiness and satisfaction. Feeling rejected or excluded triggers negative emotions, like anxiety, depression and jealousy. All of these strong and basic human emotions emphasise the importance of creating a sense of belonging: it directly impacts the experience and performance of people.
There is another important aspect to consider: the impact of a sense of belonging on team dynamics. This regards the consequences of what is referred to as impression management. To be accepted within a group, people will consciously and unconsciously convey or conceal certain parts of their personalities in an attempt to control the impression that they make. It is a way to promote acceptance by the group, or, as a minimum, to prevent being rejected. A group that values and embraces what makes each individual unique, will invite people to bring their whole selves to work, resulting in a low level of impression management. The opposite is also true: when the group conveys that people need to adjust to the standard of the majority or of a dominant group, people may conceal any deviating characteristics. This result in a negative experience for the relevant individuals and can have a profound adverse impact on the potential of the group: the group will not be able to benefit from the important benefits attributed to diverse teams, including hearing different views.
A side effect of a high level of impression management is the impact this has on the psychological safety in a team. In a diverse team, the level of psychological safety will go down in case the group dynamics are based on the standard of the majority or of a dominant group. People may feel hesitant or even be afraid to speak up because they fear rejection or exclusion. This can be a unconscious process which often times goes unnoticed by the group. The impact is significant.
We need this!
Tremendous efforts are being made to attract, develop and retain talent. As part of this, employees are invited to bring their whole selves to work. Rightfully so. People can only thrive in an environment where they feel safe, welcome, seen and valued. Companies that manage to create the conditions where people start talking and listening to each other to really understand what is needed to create a sense of belonging will be a better place to work and gain a competitive advantage.