Psychological Safety Cards
The Psychological Safety card set – illustrations for workshops and team work.
How to use
How to Use the Psychological Safety Cards
The Concept — The cards understand psychological safety not as an individual trait, but as a shared process that can be built over time, drawing on the work of Amy C. Edmondson and Timothy R. Clark. They make it tangible how safety emerges, how it is protected, and how it sometimes needs to be actively defended.
Five Dimensions, each represented by a color and symbol:
- Welcoming Mistakes (bandage)
- Open Dialogue & Feedback (speech bubble)
- Support & Trust (holding hands)
- Decision-Making & Shared Responsibility (scales)
- Belonging & Appreciation (heart in an embrace)
Maturity Logic, from 7 to Ace — Each card represents a level of impact, ranging from individual impulses to group dynamics and structural anchoring:
| Card | Term |
|---|---|
| 7 | Individual Impulse |
| 8 | Personal Initiative |
| 9 | Contribution |
| 10 | Enabling Dialogue |
| Jack | Group Impulse |
| Queen | Team Design |
| King | Cultural Development |
| Ace | Structural Anchoring |
The Antiheroes — Five characters embody behaviors that undermine psychological safety: blame, silencing, fear, exclusion, and division. They show that actively addressing risks is not optional — it is part of building a safe team.
The Game: “Five-of-a-Kind with Antiheroes”
Materials: 45 cards — 5 colors representing the 5 dimensions, with 8 cards per color from 7 to Ace, plus 5 Antiheroes. Shuffle well and deal evenly.
Goal: Form a five-card set — five cards of one color, out of a possible eight. Or: collect all 5 Antiheroes and win immediately.
Flow: Any player holding a complete five-card set lays it down. Players take turns drawing one face-down card from the person to their left. Complete five-card sets are laid down immediately. Antiheroes are either passed on when drawn — or collected strategically.
End of Game: (1) Classic version — The first player to lay down all their cards wins; the player holding the most Antiheroes loses. (2) Antihero version — The player who collects and lays down all 5 Antiheroes wins immediately.
Rule: Only single-color five-card sets or the complete Antihero set count — no mixed-color sets.
Bonus — Team Self-Check: A brief questionnaire with 15 statements across the five dimensions helps a team assess its current level of psychological safety. It works well as an entry point before or after the game.