Understanding psychosocial safety and the “last line of defence”

This doctoral research examines how organisational systems and individual psychological resources interact to influence psychosocial and physical safety outcomes in the mining industry.

While policies, procedures, and controls are essential, they don’t operate in isolation. Day-to-day decisions, behaviours, and interactions — particularly between supervisors and frontline workers — play a critical role in shaping safety and wellbeing at work.

The focus of my research

My research explores the relationship between:

  • Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC)
    The extent to which people believe their organisation genuinely prioritises psychological health and wellbeing — not just in policy, but in everyday practice.
  • Leader–Member Exchange (LMX)
    How supervisors and front-line workers experience their working relationship, including trust, support, communication, and mutual respect.
  • Psychological Capital (PsyCap)
    A set of personal psychological capacities that include:
    • confidence in one’s ability to do the job,
    • optimism about the future,
    • hope and goal-directed thinking, and
    • resilience in the face of challenge.

Together, these factors may help explain why some individuals and teams cope better than others in high-pressure environments. This research seeks to understand this.

The idea of the “last line of defence”

The concept of a “last line of defence” is used to describe the final barrier that prevents harm when other controls fail. Ultimately, when all else has failed, the decisions and behaviours of an individual maybe all that stands between the severity of an incident and resulting outcomes.

In this research, I am exploring whether individual psychological capacities — particularly among supervisors and frontline workers — can act as that final protective layer when systems, conditions, or pressures are not ideal.

This does not place responsibility on individuals. Rather, it recognises the reality that people often carry significant responsibility in complex systems, and that supporting their psychological capacity may be a critical part of improving safety and wellbeing.

How the research is designed

The research is being conducted as a PhD by publication and uses a qualitative approach, focused on in-depth interviews.

It consists of two linked studies:

Study 1 – Supervisors

This study explores supervisors’ experiences, perspectives, and insights regarding:

  • psychosocial safety,
  • working relationships,
  • leadership challenges, and
  • personal psychological strengths in mining environments.

Study 2 – Frontline Workers

This study will occur after Study 1 and will explore similar themes from the perspective of frontline workers who report to participating supervisors.

Study 2 will not commence until Study 1 is completed and ethics approval is in place.

What this research is not

To be clear, this research is:

  • not a performance review,
  • not an organisational audit,
  • not a mental health assessment, and
  • not connected to employers, HR, or regulators.

The focus is on learning from your experience, not judging it.

Ethics and confidentiality

This research is being conducted under the oversight of Edith Cowan University and is subject to formal ethics approval. Participation is voluntary, confidential, and participants can withdraw at any time without consequence.

More information about ethics, privacy, and participant rights is available on the Ethics & Your Rights section.

Next steps

If you would like to learn more about participating, you can: