“I Feel Like I Fit In”: Middle School Students’ Perceptions Of Psychological Safety

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: School Discipline and Safety

Abstract

Early adolescence involves identity exploration, peer sensitivity, and growing autonomy. For middle schoolers, psychological safety—the freedom to take risks, share ideas, and express themselves without fear—is vital for engagement, supporting learning and belonging, while its absence fuels anxiety, withdrawal, and disengagement. This study examined students’ experiences of psychological safety through interviews with 36 youth from two diverse suburban schools. Using Rogers’ humanistic framework, we analyzed accounts of belonging, fairness, cultural validation, and autonomy. Thematic analysis identified four anchors: supportive relationships, non-punitive learning environments, empathic understanding, and authentic expression. Students also described inequity, peer exclusion, and stereotyping challenging safety. Findings position psychological safety as an equity-focused climate dimension vital to adolescents’ growth.

psychological safety, middle school, school climate, belonging, risk-taking, engagement

Authors

• Mitali Temurnikar, Boston University

• Tina M. Durand, Boston University

• Pei Wang, Boston University