Perceived Structure of Psychological Safety
among Supervisee Coaches in Coaching
Supervision: An Integrated Concept Map
Model of Facilitating and Inhibiting
Factors
Hong, Su-a
Coaching Psychology, Kwangshin University
(Supervised by Professor: Kim...
Perceived Structure of Psychological Safety
among Supervisee Coaches in Coaching
Supervision: An Integrated Concept Map
Model of Facilitating and Inhibiting
Factors
Hong, Su-a
Coaching Psychology, Kwangshin University
(Supervised by Professor: Kim, Yong-ku)
Abstract
This study aimed to identify the facilitating and inhibiting factors of
psychological safety perceived by supervisee coaches in the context of
coaching supervision, to derive these factors from supervisee coaches’ own
language and perspectives, to clarify the structural relationships among
these factors through concept mapping, and to propose an integrated
model of the perceived structure of psychological safety. The research
questions were as follows: (1) How are the facilitating factors of
psychological safety perceived, and what structural patterns do they form?
(2) How are the inhibiting factors of psychological safety perceived, and
what structural patterns do they form? (3) How are the perceived
structures of facilitating and inhibiting factors integrated within a single
concept map, and how can their interaction structure and an integrated
model be derived?
The participants were 12 supervisee coaches who had received coaching - 159
supervision within the past five years and held professional coaching
credentials (KPC, KSC, PCC, MCC). Data were collected through a
combination of group and individual interviews conducted between August
and November 2024. Open-ended statements generated during the
interviews were reviewed and refined by integrating overlapping or similar
content, resulting in 80 statements related to psychological safety (40
facilitating factors and 40 inhibiting factors). Participants then performed
similarity sorting and importance rating of the statements. The collected
data were analyzed using multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster
analysis, which visualized the facilitating and inhibiting factors, respectively,
as two-dimensional maps with six clusters each. Finally, the two concept
maps were integrated to derive an overall model representing the perceived
structure of psychological safety among supervisee coaches.
The concept map of facilitating factors yielded two underlying
dimensions: the X-axis, labeled “from growth-based conditions to execution
strategies,” and the Y-axis, labeled “from strategy-based conditions to
professionalization,” within which six clusters were identified. The concept
map of inhibiting factors formed six clusters along two dimensions: the
X-axis, labeled “from institutional and structural constraints to relational
and feedback deficits,” and the Y-axis, labeled “from strategy-based
conditions to professionalization.” Key inhibiting factors weakening
psychological safety included instability of supervision structures and
ambiguous
goals,
insufficient
relationship
and
feedback,
an
evaluation-centered climate and emotional exhaustion, and a lack of
developmental pathways and support resources. When the facilitating and
inhibiting factors were interpreted within an integrated coordinate system,
the resulting model showed that psychological safety operates as a
multilayered perceived structure at the intersection of individual internal
resources, the relationship with the supervisor, and the institutional - 160
structures and organizational culture of supervision. The integrated model
visually presents a facilitating pathway from institution-oriented and
structure-oriented
conditions
toward
strategy-oriented
and
execution-oriented conditions, and from strategy-based practices toward
professionalization, while at the same time illustrating how inhibiting factors
function as offsetting or constraining mechanisms along this pathway.
These findings specify the concept of psychological safety, previously
discussed mainly at team and organizational levels, in terms of supervisee
coaches’ perceived structure and experience-based factors within the
context of coaching supervision, and extend the theoretical scope of
psychological safety research to the domain of coaching professional
development by presenting an integrated model of facilitating and inhibiting
factors. Furthermore, the integrated model provides a guiding framework
for
designing
supervision
structures,
supervisor
education,
and
organizational-level institutional arrangements that enhance psychological
safety, and offers a practical basis for identifying the core relational,
structural, and strategic conditions under which coaching supervision can
function as a safe learning space that supports coaches’ growth and
professional development.
Keywords: psychological safety, coaching supervision, supervisee coaches,
concept mapping, facilitating factors, hindering factors, integrated
model