- Dragana Jocic: University Business Academy in Novi Sad, Faculty of Pharmacy, Serbia.
Background: Agile coaching, recognized as a more advanced methodology compared to education, is hypothesized to yield superior outcomes in enhancing psychological safety perception.
Objective: Investigating the effectiveness of agile interventions versus no intervention on psychological safety perception, this randomized controlled trial aimed to clarify outcomes.
Methods: The survey sample consisted of 54 licensed pharmacists, with each group comprising 18 participants: E1 underwent Agile Coaching, E2 underwent Agile Education, and C served as the control. After six weeks, psychological safety perception was measured using a validated scale, and statistical analyses, including the Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test, were conducted.
Results: The group undergoing agile coaching showed the most substantial enhancements in psychological safety perception compared to others. Mann-Whitney test revealed no significant difference in psychological safety perception between E1 and E2 groups before (Z = -0.938, = 0.348) and after intervention (Z = -1.269, = 0.204). Significant differences were observed between E1 and C both before (Z = -2.693, = 0.007) and after intervention (Z = -1.414, = 0.157). Significant differences were found between E2 and C before ( = 0.038) but not after intervention ( = 0.962).
Conclusions: The findings suggest that agile coaching could be an effective intervention for enhancing psychological safety in organizational settings, particularly in community pharmacies. Further research is warranted to explore long-term effects and generalize findings to broader contexts.