Organizational Leadership Research Articles

Leadership in small business environments: from the heroic model to distributed approach

Purpose This study explores the process of interactions experienced by leaders during the evolution of the small firm. Three key propositions are conceptualized into a model with the main aim of supporting leaders of small organizations in understanding better the leadership phenomena. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative research project investigates the dynamics of leadership in small businesses through an inductive and abductive approach, inherent to grounded theory. This enabled the development of propositions directly from data. Field research involved responsive interviews with 12 established small enterprise leaders. Selective and theoretical sampling coupled with ongoing data comparison and analysis were applied to uncover and refine emerging leadership concepts. Findings Intellectual assets of leaders in small firms propel the recognition and sensitivity to the process of organizational evolution which requires a continuous adaptation of the leadership paradigm. Research limitations/implications The researchers’ philosophical stance to construct reality based on the participants own experiences, cannot produce generalized findings on the subject area. Practical implications Enhanced Decision-Making and Strategic Planning: Small business leaders can leverage their academic and industry backgrounds to make more informed and strategic decisions. Facilitating Organizational Change: By understanding the necessity of continuous change, small business leaders can implement frameworks that encourage flexibility and adaptability within their organizations. Adopting Distributed Leadership: Encouraging small business owners to move away from centralized control towards a more distributed leadership model can lead to better organizational outcomes. Originality/value A considerable amount of research has been devoted to leadership in the past decades. There is very little evidence on behavioral patterns of leaders, grounded in data within the context of the Small Firm aimed at the practitioner. This work is contribution towards this shortfall.

Leadership Practices, Organization Structure, and Other Factors Associated with Higher 2022-2023 US News and World Report Ranking.

U.S. News and World Report 2022-2023 hospital rankings were used to investigate the leadership practices and organizational structure of ranked healthcare institutions. Institutional variables including physician leadership status, executive board size, number of physician board members, type of physician practice, health system size, and for-profit status were collected. US News and World Report scores were used to create a comprehensive institutional rank order list. Strength of association was evaluated between these variables and the organization's US News and World Report rank. Our analysis included 546 institutions representing 1676 hospitals. Leadership under a physician CEO (OR 1.59 (95% CI 1.27, 2.00) P < 0.001), group practice (OR 1.25 (95% CI 1.01, 1.59) P = 0.042), and bed count of the institution's highest-ranking hospital (OR 1.001 (95% CI 1.0009, 1.0014) P < 0.001) were associated with higher US News and World Report ranking. For-profit status was negatively associated with institution ranking (OR 0.44 (95% CI 0.24, 0.78) P = 0.005). No significant association was demonstrated between number of physician executive board members, health system bed count, executive board size, or the number of hospitals in a health system and the institutional ranking. Physician leadership, organizational structure, size of the institution's flagship hospital, and tax status are significantly associated with an organization's US News and World Report rank.

Preliminary Study on the Relationship Between Organizational Climate, Leadership Style, and Job Satisfaction in the Context of Nurse Practitioners

Job satisfaction in nurse practitioners is influenced by the level of autonomy and empowerment they perceive within their practice environment. Little in-depth research has been done to explore the relationship among organizational climate, leadership style, and job satisfaction in the context of nurse practitioners. This study was developed to explore the relationship among organizational climate, leadership style, and job satisfaction in nurse practitioners with the goal of enhancing their job satisfaction. A cross-sectional correlational approach and snowball sampling method were employed to recruit 400 qualified nurse practitioners to complete an online survey. This survey was a structured questionnaire consisting of the Practice Organizational Climate Scale, Leadership Style Scale, and Job Satisfaction Scale. Statistical analyses used included the independent t test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson's correlation, and multiple linear regression analysis. Most of the participants were 31 to 50 years old. A significant and positive correlation was identified among overall organizational climate, leadership style, and job satisfaction. In terms of organizational climate components, only professional visibility was not found to significantly correlate with job satisfaction. Transformational leadership, servant leadership, independent work, and relationships with support and management departments collectively explained nearly 72.4% of overall job satisfaction. The findings demonstrate job satisfaction in nurse practitioners to be significantly influenced by organizational climate and leadership style. Thus, fostering a positive organizational climate and enhancing transformational and servant leadership styles may be expected to improve job satisfaction in this group substantively. Therefore, it is recommended healthcare institutions focus on improving the organizational climate, providing more autonomy and support, and enhancing leadership training for supervisors with the goal of increasing overall job satisfaction and retention rates among nurse practitioners.

Achieving Work-Life Balance as an Organizational Leader: Strategies for Leaving Work at Work

This article explores research-backed strategies that organizational leaders can implement to effectively achieve work-life balance and integration. It discusses the importance of leaders setting clear expectations and boundaries around work hours and responsibilities through formal policies, communication of response times, and role modeling healthy behaviors. It also addresses the need for leaders to create intentional boundaries when using technology and shift to a "work to live" mindset. The article outlines techniques leaders can use to make time for rest and recharging, such as scheduling vacations and practicing daily decompression routines. It emphasizes the value of leaders showing empathy, understanding, flexibility, and distributing work equitably. Finally, the article encourages leaders to promote employees' well-being through benefits, on-site activities, and opportunities for volunteer/learning days and growth. The purpose is to provide guidance for optimizing sustainable work-life integration to benefit both individuals and organizations.

Organizational culture and leadership style in Spanish Hospitals: Effects on knowledge management and efficiency

Hospital culture and leadership style have attracted considerable attention in research, with compelling evidence indicating their potential competitive advantages, including their crucial role in ensuring the successful implementation of knowledge management and its impact on hospital efficiency. The aim of this paper is to identify the effects of organizational culture and leadership style on knowledge management and hospital efficiency. Fuzzy cognitive maps (FCMs) are relational models that can be used to represent the opinions and knowledge of expert to infer cause-effect relationships among different concepts. The use of FCMs as a simulation tool enables the evaluation of potential scenarios based on different organizational cultures and leadership styles in hospitals. Developing an FCM for this study involved several steps. Firstly, data were collected through interviews with 21 experts in hospital management. The interviews were conducted between May and September 2023 either face-to-face or via videoconference. Once individual cognitive maps had been created, consensus among them was achieved through a multicriteria decision-making process, wherein the expert opinions were averaged. The separate cognitive maps of each expert were then integrated to produce a single FCM using the augmented FCM approach. Reflecting expert insights from the FCM, hospitals with a hierarchy culture exhibit diminished levels of knowledge creation, management, and overall hospital efficiency, whereas those with an adhocracy culture show improvements in knowledge creation, knowledge exploitation, and overall hospital efficiency in comparison to alternative ones. From the experts' FCM perspective regarding leadership style, transformational leadership achieves the highest level of knowledge management and hospital efficiency in hospitals with an adhocracy culture. Finally, this paper offers a reference for practising knowledge management and improving hospital efficiency through adhocracy culture and transformational leadership.

Future-Proofing Your Organization: Key Principles for Leading Through the AI Transition

As artificial intelligence (AI) advances rapidly, organizations must develop meaningful long-term strategies to realize opportunities and mitigate risks, as academic research shows AI will significantly impact over 50% of jobs by 2030, requiring workforce planning, while industries like travel agencies have faced disruption from failing to adapt to digital technologies like AI. Effective AI strategies include establishing integrated 3-5 year technology roadmaps that articulate adoption timelines, skill development, and business transformations, identifying core capabilities to augment with AI, such as diagnostics for healthcare, while data and technology foundations are also critical for deploying AI projects at scale and continuous skills training is needed to fill emerging roles and offset potential job losses. The article discusses strategic considerations for industries like healthcare, where strategies focus on augmenting clinicians, standardizing data, and establishing governance, transportation organizations must plan for autonomous vehicle testing and adoption, and reskill mechanics, and financial institutions can develop robo-advisors and lending platforms while modernizing legacy systems. Therefore, organizational leaders need such integrated roadmaps and ongoing governance to leverage AI's productivity benefits while guiding responsible adoption and workforce evolution amid ongoing disruption through proactive strategic planning that will help direct, rather than undergo, technological transformation.

Roles and Responsibilities in University‐Community Engagement for Library and Information Scientists

ABSTRACTThis panel describes innovative digital projects and services supporting university‐community engagement. Panelists will draw on their experiences as librarians and researchers collaborating with a range of constituents, including newcomers, Indigenous communities, non‐profit organization leaders, and over‐researched, low‐income communities in rural and urban settings across Canada. The panel seeks to highlight the need to foster place‐based, contextually driven approaches to university‐community engagement efforts, and the opportunities and challenges inherent in this work. Audience members will be asked to reflect on their own experiences and consider the roles and responsibilities for library and information science scholars and professionals in facilitating reciprocity and capacity building in community‐university partnerships.

Developing the Right Skills for Future Success in a Digital World

This article discusses how organizations can develop skills in their employees that cannot be replicated by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies. It explores three categories of skills that are likely to withstand the rise of AI: creative and design skills, social and emotional skills, and adaptability and lifelong learning. Practical guidance is provided for cultivating these skills through targeted training and developing a learning culture. Case studies of companies in the technology, healthcare and manufacturing industries are examined. The role of leadership in prioritizing skills development is also covered. The article argues that by committing resources to systematically building these human skills sets and fostering continuous learning, companies can ensure their workforce is prepared for the impacts of technological change on work. Total commitment from organizational leaders is seen as key to inspiring a culture where people feel empowered to learn and improve.

A Study to Determine Consensus for Nursing Documentation Reduction in Times of Crisis.

Nurses faced numerous challenges during the pandemic, particularly with the increased burden of electronic documentation. Surges in patient volume and visits led to rapid changes in nursing documentation, prompting diverse responses from regulatory and healthcare organizations. Nurses expressed safety concerns and struggled with changes, calling for national standards and regulatory support. Policy relaxations, such as the 1135 Waiver, sparked debate on the future of nursing care plan documentation. Using mixed-methods exploratory design, the study identified modifications of nursing documentation during crises, commonalities in documentation burden reduction for applicability beyond pandemics, and consensus on the definition of "surge." Documentation patterns were assessed from February to November 2022, involving 175 North American nurse leaders and informaticists. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, thematic analysis, and Pearson correlation coefficient. Significant differences were found between rural and urban settings (P = .02), with urban areas showing higher odds of changes to care plans (odds ratio, 4.889; 95% confidence interval, 1.27-18.78). Key findings highlighted the persistence of postcrisis documentation changes and varied definitions of surge criteria based on organizational leadership, policy, and mandates. The study yielded insights for modifying documentation, offering policy recommendations, and emphasizing ongoing collaboration and evidence-based approaches for future nursing practices.

Construction of a New Emergency Management System for Potentially Viral/Viral Municipal Solid Waste in China: Based on the "Beam-Column Structure" Framework Model

Emergency management of municipal solid waste during public health emergencies is crucial for curbing the spread of viruses and controlling environmental pollution. Most existing solid waste management systems, are designed with a top-down approach, covering multiple industries and sectors. However, these systems often fail to effectively manage potentially viral solid waste in household waste, which impedes effective solid waste management during public health emergencies and increases the risk of viral outbreaks. For example, during the COVID-19 outbreak, negligent management of potentially viral solid waste may result in the formation of a potential transmission chain of COVID-19 virus. Improper waste management may contaminate natural vectors such as water, soil and air, thereby increasing the pathways of human contact with infected vectors and promoting the risk of transmission of viral diseases such as dengue, Zika and hepatitis A. In this study, the applicability and limitations of the Chinese public emergency management system in the disposal of Potentially Viral/Viral Municipal Solid Waste (PVMSW) were analyzed in the breakout of public health crises. To address the need for precise risk control, efficient collaboration among key stakeholders, functional integration crossing multiple management organizations and flexible responses to complex situations, we proposed a PVMSW emergency management system based on a "Beam-Column Structure" model. This system consists of four modules: main traction, organizational leadership, functional articulation and demand matching. Each module is supported by the corresponding safeguards, including multi-level subject responsibilities, multi-scenario organization and implementation, multi-chain process connection and multi-demand control methods. The PVMSW emergency management system proposed in this study contributes to extending the framework of existing waste management protocols and enhancing the timely collection, transportation and disposal of PVMSW in public health crises. It offers valuable insights and guidance on the practices for improving risk awareness and management capacity in China's solid waste emergency response.

The 6 Biggest Mistakes Leaders Make When Motivating Employees

Abstract: This article examines key factors that demotivate employees based on research in organizational psychology and leadership theory. It identifies a lack of feedback and praise, unclear or misaligned goals, limited autonomy and decision-making power, insufficient opportunities for skills development and growth, unrealistic workload expectations, and poor communication as universal demotivators across organizational contexts. Specific examples from the automotive industry illustrate how these issues negatively impact motivation. The article maintains that while individualized approaches are needed, certain demotivating behaviors should be avoided, such as not providing regular performance feedback or recognition. It advocates for goal setting, autonomy-enhancing problem solving, targeted skills training programs, reasonable workload calibration, and transparent communication as evidence-based ways to meaningfully boost employee engagement. The conclusion reiterates that leadership equipped with motivation science can focus on empowering rather than discouraging employees through these best practices.

Co-creation of value in a cultural organizations’ ecosystem

From the perspective of Service Dominant Logic (Vargo and Lusch 2018), this research analyzes how co-creation of value develops in a Peruvian cultural ecosystem through analyzing its actor’s engagement, embeddedness, and value-in-context. The findings obtained aim to contribute to the dialogue between S-D logic and Arts Marketing, and to put light on the mechanisms that activate and restrict cultural participation in a service ecosystem. The research consists of a multiple case study which analyzes the Peruvian Puntos de Cultura Network (PPDCN) through 9 of its organizations. Participants include organizational leaders, users, and Network central headquarters’ managers. The instruments were an exploratory survey, semi-structured interviews, and a focus group. The analysis included codification, inter-rater reliability, ‘making-strange tool’ and a meta-matrix. Through the study of the co-creation of value in the PPDCN, findings revealed the following mechanisms for cultural participation: (1) Activation mechanisms: co-production between organizations and users; high leader engagement; cultural identity activities; educative, affective and entertainment-oriented activities. (2) Restriction mechanisms: different institutional logics at any level of interaction: organizations and Headquarters managers, organizations and socio-cultural environment, Headquarters managers and state actors; misalignment of platforms.

Barriers and facilitators to the uptake of electronic collection and use of patient-reported measures in routine care of older adults: a systematic review with qualitative evidence synthesis.

The aims of this systematic review were to (1) synthesize the available qualitative evidence on the barriers and facilitators influencing implementation of the electronic collection and use of patient-reported measures (PRMs) in older adults' care from various stakeholder perspectives and (2) map these factors to the digital technology implementation framework Non-adoption, Abandonment, challenges to the Scale-up, Spread, Sustainability (NASSS) and behavior change framework Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behaviour (COM-B). A search of MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus, and Web of Science databases from 1 January 2001 to 27 October 2021 was conducted and included English language qualitative studies exploring stakeholder perspectives on the electronic collection and use of PRMs in older adults' care. Two authors independently screened studies, conducted data extraction, quality appraisal using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP), data coding, assessed confidence in review findings using Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation Confidence in the Evidence from Reviews of Qualitative Research (GRADE CERQual), and mapped the findings to NASSS and COM-B. An inductive approach was used to synthesize findings describing the stakeholder perspectives of barriers and facilitators. Twenty-two studies were included from the 3368 records identified. Studies explored older adult, caregiver, healthcare professional, and administrative staff perspectives. Twenty nine of 34 review findings (85%) were graded as having high or moderate confidence. Key factors salient to older adults related to clinical conditions and socio-cultural factors, digital literacy, access to digital technology, and user interface. Factors salient to healthcare professionals related to resource availability to collect and use PRMs, and value of PRMs collection and use. Future efforts to implement electronic collection and use of PRMs in older adults' care should consider addressing the barriers, facilitators, and key theoretical domains identified in this review. Older adults are more likely to adopt electronic completion of PRMs when barriers associated with digital technology access, digital literacy, and user interface are addressed. Future research should explore the perspectives of other stakeholders, including those of organizational leaders, digital technology developers and implementation specialists, in various healthcare settings and explore factors influencing implementation of PREMs. CRD42022295894.

A Canadian national study of provincial and territorial correctional workers' suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts.

Correctional workers (CWs) endure several operational stressors (e.g., exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events) and organisational stressors (e.g., shift work, staff shortages), which are associated with positive screens for mental disorders and self-reports of suicidal behaviours and thus urgently warrant further inquiry. The Canadian Provincial and Territorial Correctional Worker Mental Health and Well-Being Study (CWMH) used an online survey to collect data from Canadian correctional service organisations across all 13 provinces and territories. This national Canadian study investigates suicidal behaviours among CWs across diverse occupational roles and provincial and territorial jurisdictions (n=3740, 50.1% female). The results estimated prevalence proportions for self-reported past-year and lifetime suicidal thoughts, planning, and attempts across the 13 Canadian provincial and territorial correctional systems, with the exceptions of past-year suicidal planning in Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and Yukon where jurisdictional considerations and requests precluded the inclusion of select questions. Substantial proportions of participants reported past-year or lifetime suicidal ideation (i.e., 9.1%, 29.2%, respectively), planning (i.e., 4.1%, 14.7%, respectively), or attempts (i.e., 0.8%, 7.2%, respectively). Sociodemographic variables (i.e., sex, age, marital status, total years of service, occupational category) were associated with past-year and lifetime suicidal behaviours. Findings provide opportunities for future research and can inform tailored efforts by clinicians, service providers, and organisational leaders to support proactive interventions and treatments, including supporting the partners and families of CWs, fostering social support networks, and improving access to timely mental health treatment.

Employee perspectives on effective crisis leadership skills in small and medium-sized enterprises

ABSTRACT Building on the 4Cs and five phases of crisis management and Hersey and Blanchard’s situational leadership model, this research aims to identify employees’ perspectives and expectations on crisis leadership characteristics and skills to lead organisations and decrease the disruptive effects of a black swan event. This exploratory research interviewed 43 small and medium-sized enterprise employees from wholesale and retail trade sectors in Taiwan and the U.S. and studied their expectations of effective crisis leadership. Using an inductive thematic analysis, this research identified eight themes for leaders to navigate and lead through crises and make positive changes. Personal qualities and abilities to excel are the top two themes mentioned by most of the interviewees. A follower-centred situational leadership that demonstrates positive personal qualities, focuses on employee safety, and assures job security and transparency can effectively lead the employees and organisation to overcome a crisis. The findings could be used for organisation leaders’ and HRD professionals’ practice as change agents and for future research in HRD theory and leadership.

The Changing Ambitions of Workers: Adapting Leadership for Today's Reality

Recent research suggests workers' career ambitions are changing, with fewer aspiring to top executive roles like CEO. This article explores the implications of shifting ambitions for organizational leadership strategies. Research from McKinsey and others finds only 3 in 10 workers today want C-suite careers, down from previous generations where climbing the corporate ladder was standard. Societal factors like economic instability and greater valuation of work-life balance, as well as generational preferences for meaningful work and flexibility over prestige roles, help explain changing priorities. To optimize talent management amid these trends, the author recommends companies realign leadership strategies, talent practices, and culture. Distributed leadership models, non-linear career paths focused on skills development, and culture emphasizing purpose, learning, and well-being can better engage modern workers who prioritize autonomy, growth, and impact over rigid hierarchy. Industry examples demonstrate how redefining success and expanding career definitions can boost retention, diversity, and collaboration.

Harnessing Emotional Intelligence: Enhancing Employee Performance in Kerala’s Retail Textile Industry

This research explores the effects of EI (Emotional Intelligence) on employee performance in the retail textile industry in Kerala with specific reference to the moderating roles of organizational culture and leadership style. With the ever-growing demands of the retail sector, it is imperative to demonstrate the efficiency of EI in improving employee performance to support a sustained competitive advantage. This research adopts a descriptive research design, whereby both quantitative and qualitative data will be collected to capture the goals and objectives of the study. Structural equation Modelling (SEM) was used to determine the relationship between EI and the level of performance of employees, as well as the moderating role of organizational culture and leadership style. This study focuses on textile manufacturing employees of the selected retail outlets of Kerala, with a sample size of 250. The results are expected to help explain how EI can enhance performance, especially under conditions of leadership support and organizational culture. The implications of these findings should offer explicit counsel to managers in the retail textile industry to facilitate a work climate that boosts the emotional capabilities of workers, resulting in increased work efficiency and contentment. Apart from extending the body of knowledge on emotional intelligence and employee performance, the findings of this study provide an important guideline for the retail sector of Kerala with regard to emotional intelligence that must be developed to enhance performance and sustain business success in the future.

Analisis Pencegahan Kekerasan dan Pendekatan Adil Gender pada Sekolah Muhammadiyah Berbasis Pesantren di Jawa Timur

Nowadays, it has become a trust issue, about violence and sexual harassment in the Islamic boarding school environment. In addition to parenting patterns, a gender-fair approach is also an aspect that needs to be studied. This study aims to analyze the prevention of violence and a gender-equality approach in Muhammadiyah boarding schools in East Java. This research is a qualitative study. The subjects of the study were selected using a purposive method, they are the chief and caregivers of the boarding school in two Islamic boarding schools located in Sidoarjo Regency and Lamongan Regency, East Java. The research data collection technique was carried out using 3 (three) methods, observation, documentation, and interviews. The data analysis technique used descriptive analysis. The study showed that in terms of preventing violence, Muhammadiyah Islamic boarding schools use a parenting pattern strategy that prioritizes child-friendly principles, and minimizes physical punishment, with the concept of rahmatan lil alamin. Meanwhile, in terms of preventing sexual abuse, education is considered less massive and has not touched on the substantive realm across genders. Furthermore, a gender-fair approach is shown by equality in access to opportunities for male and female students in organizational leadership, as well as in the practice of preaching.

There Is More to Life Than Walking: A Qualitative Study of Survivorship Among Peer Mentors in the Spinal Cord Injury Community.

Objective: To identify factors impacting survivorship among people living with spinal cord injury (SCI) and volunteering in a peer mentorship program. Research Method/Design: Semi-structured interviews were conducted by a leader of a non-profit organization designed to promote independent living after SCI. Questions explored intrinsic factors such as resilience and emotional coping as well extrinsic factors such as family support and accessibility challenges that impacted their SCI survivorship journey. Two independent anonymous reviewers conducted thematic analysis to identify these factors. Results: Twenty-eight members of the SCI peer mentorship program participated. Four themes affecting survivorship were identified: Sense of Achievement, Post-Injury Growth, Post-Injury Challenges, and Giving and Receiving Support. Nearly all participants focused their responses on Post-Injury Growth and Giving and Receiving Support as reasons for their interest in serving as peer mentors. Conclusions: This study highlights a need for peer community integration following SCI and underscores the importance of using a community-driven participatory model to inform and guide research. Peer mentorship programs can link SCI survivors to mentors and facilitate other sources of social fulfillment and thus can have a profound impact on individuals' survivorship post-SCI. This study identified a Sense of Achievement, Post-Injury Growth, Giving and Receiving Support, and Post-Injury Challenges as factors that most impact the SCI survivorship journey. This community leader's work underscores the importance of cognitive framing and social networks in post-injury rehabilitation in this population. Future directions include analyzing the longitudinal effects of peer mentorship participation on life satisfaction and community building in individuals living with SCI.

Влияние жизнестойкости на психологическую безопасность пожарных-спасателей

Introduction. The professional activity of a firefighter is inseparable from psychological states associated with risks and challenges. Performing the tasks of extinguishing fires, eliminating emergency situations and man-made disasters, firefighters act in a team. Their hardiness, the ability to use adaptive strategies in difficult situations, the skill of constructive interpersonal interaction depends on their psychological safety. The aim of the study is to examine firefighters' resilience and its contribution to psychological safety. Materials and methods. The following methods were used: The Hardiness Survey (S. Muddy), The Security Questionnaire (Ch. Kong and L. Ahn), The Portrait Values Questionnaire (Sh. Schwartz). The study on the basis of IPSA GPSA of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia involved firefighters studying in the master's programme in the direction of “Fire Safety”. Methods of mathematical data processing (descriptive statistics, Spearman rank correlation, regression analysis) were implemented in IBM SPSS Statistics 26 package. Results. The mean scores of resilience, personal psychological safety of firefighters were above the normative values. Significant correlations were found between psychological safety and resilience of firefighters, and involvement as a component of resilience is a predictor of psychological safety with the dominance of values of caring for people and nature. Conclusion. Firefighters' willingness to take risks, sense of confidence and control, and engagement enable adaptive, resilient coping mechanisms. Firefighters' higher sense of psychological safety reflects their ability to better cope with stress, make informed decisions, work effectively as a team, and maintain their psychological well-being in high-risk and highresponsibility environments. Job involvement and commitment to the values of the profession enhance their sense of psychological safety in a teamwork environment and confidence in control. It is important for leaders of fire and rescue organisations to understand the psychological benefits based on resilience and firefighters' sense of psychological safety and to employ practices to develop them.