Social inhibition, which manifests and impacts in multiple ways-from performance, ownership of work, and growth- can be managed well in a psychologically safe workplace.
Imagine this: You step inside a fine dining restaurant wearing sneakers after getting your temperature checked. You then reach out for your phone, anticipating notifications and wondering what others are thinking about the sneakers- this is social inhibition in action!
Altering behavior consciously or non-consciously to avoid being judged or fearing being misinterpreted is called social inhibition. Social inhibition can be classified into cognitive and behavioral inhibition. Social inhibition has led people to indulge themselves in substance abuse. A person becoming friendly after consuming a glass of alcohol is one example.
Social inhibition is not restricted to socializing events and can manifest in the workplace in many ways:
- Understating one’s achievements because they could come across as being boastful
- Inability to see situations as they are and instead, constantly assuming positive intent because of the fear of being misjudged
- Being unable to voice out opinions even when asked during meetings because of the fear of being alienated
- Not participating in organizational events because of social anxiety
- Wanting to always understand other’s body language or thoughts because of the fear of disapproval
Social inhibition affects the workplace in many ways:
- It prevents people from taking pride in what they do leading to selling themselves short within internal and external company projects
- It prevents employees from learning or growing from interacting with others because of their fear of being misjudged
- It prevents employees from healthy collaborations because of constantly thinking what others might think about them
Non-conscious biases can impact when selecting a resume or while interviewing. However, social inhibition can have an impact even before the selection process by creating anxiety, although the interaction is work-related.
The root cause of social anxiety is cultural conditioning. Simple family interactions such as parents expecting their children to immediately return to their rooms as soon as they greet their guests to give them privacy can send a wrong message to the children.
Although social inhibition stems from cultural conditioning, organizations can reduce it by creating a psychologically safe workplace. Instead of pushing their employees to speak during meetings, show them that their ideas are implemented.
Understand their cultural conditioning, and assign mentors if needed to facilitate uninhibited collaboration. Conducting employee training programs via external consultants can also ensure that the inhibition doesn’t hamper work.
