A Casual Model to Understand Psychological Safety Affecting Employee Creativity: Role of Knowledge Sharing, Knowledge Hiding and Organizational Safety Climate

This study aims to investigate the impact of psychological safety on employee creativity, focusing on the mediating roles of knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding and the moderating effect of organizational safety climate. Utilizing a sample of 757 skilled workers from large Chinese manufacturing enterprises, we collect data through a structured questionnaire via stratified random sampling across four key sectors: light textiles, resource processing, machinery and electronics, and other manufacturing. Data analysis used structural equation modelling (SEM) to validate the hypothesized relationships. The results confirm that psychological safety significantly enhances employee creativity, with knowledge sharing positively mediating and knowledge hiding negatively mediating this relationship. Furthermore, the organizational safety climate aims to amplify the positive impact of psychological safety on knowledge sharing and mitigate knowledge hiding. This study contributes to the literature by elucidating how psychological safety influences creativity and providing practical insights for fostering an innovative organizational environment.