Publisher
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Place of Publication
Chattanooga (Tenn.)
Abstract
Prior research suggests that workplace allyship promotes psychological well-being, job satisfaction, and psychological safety by signaling support, validation, and belonging within workplace relationships (Funk et al., 2026; Reis et al., 2010; Siyal, 2023; Usman et al., 2025). According to Lucy De Souza’s typology, allyship addresses bias when it occurs, while proactive allyship actively fosters inclusion, respect, and employee growth (De Souza & Schmader, 2025). One mechanism through which allyship may influence workplace outcomes is interpersonal capitalization, defined as sharing positive events with others and receiving an enthusiastic, supportive response (Reis et al., 2010). Since allyship communicates acceptance and support, employees who experience greater allyship may feel more comfortable sharing workplace successes and positive experiences with coworkers. These interactions can foster interpersonal connections and increase psychological safety. Siyal (2023) found that inclusive environments increase employee psychological safety and engagement, which may also encourage organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) that benefit the broader organization. Usman et al. (2025) found that psychologically safe and engaged employees demonstrate higher levels of challenge-oriented OCBs. Thus, proactive and reactive allyship may promote workplace capitalization by creating supportive interpersonal relationships. Capitalization may serve as a mechanism linking allyship to workforce engagement, organizational citizenship behaviors, and psychological safety. Using De Souza’s framework and a cross-sectional design, we surveyed 297 U.S.-based LGBTQ+ employees. We measured employee perceptions of supervisor allyship, likelihood of workplace capitalization, psychological safety, employee engagement, and frequency of organizational citizenship behaviors. Reactive and proactive allyship were used to predict psychological safety, workforce engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors. We then used path analysis to determine if workplace capitalization mediated the relationship between either type of allyship and each of the three outcomes. Linear regression analyses showed that reactive and proactive allyship were significantly associated with all three outcomes. Proactive allyship showed a stronger association with psychological safety and workforce engagement, whereas reactive allyship showed a stronger association with organizational citizenship behaviors. Path analyses showed that capitalization mediated the relationship between both types of allyships and all three outcomes. These cross-sectional findings provide preliminary evidence that workplace allyship may function as an important organizational resource that promotes psychological safety, workforce engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors among LGBTQ+ employees. By fostering supportive environments in which employees feel comfortable sharing positive experiences, allyship may contribute to more inclusive, collaborative, and effective organizational cultures. Furthermore, the findings identify capitalization as a potential relational mechanism through which allyship influences positive workplace outcomes.
Date
November 2026
Subject
Industrial and organizational psychology
Document Type
posters
Language
English
Rights
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Included in
Workplace Allyship Predicts Positive Outcomes in LGBTQ Employees
Prior research suggests that workplace allyship promotes psychological well-being, job satisfaction, and psychological safety by signaling support, validation, and belonging within workplace relationships (Funk et al., 2026; Reis et al., 2010; Siyal, 2023; Usman et al., 2025). According to Lucy De Souza’s typology, allyship addresses bias when it occurs, while proactive allyship actively fosters inclusion, respect, and employee growth (De Souza & Schmader, 2025). One mechanism through which allyship may influence workplace outcomes is interpersonal capitalization, defined as sharing positive events with others and receiving an enthusiastic, supportive response (Reis et al., 2010). Since allyship communicates acceptance and support, employees who experience greater allyship may feel more comfortable sharing workplace successes and positive experiences with coworkers. These interactions can foster interpersonal connections and increase psychological safety. Siyal (2023) found that inclusive environments increase employee psychological safety and engagement, which may also encourage organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) that benefit the broader organization. Usman et al. (2025) found that psychologically safe and engaged employees demonstrate higher levels of challenge-oriented OCBs. Thus, proactive and reactive allyship may promote workplace capitalization by creating supportive interpersonal relationships. Capitalization may serve as a mechanism linking allyship to workforce engagement, organizational citizenship behaviors, and psychological safety. Using De Souza’s framework and a cross-sectional design, we surveyed 297 U.S.-based LGBTQ+ employees. We measured employee perceptions of supervisor allyship, likelihood of workplace capitalization, psychological safety, employee engagement, and frequency of organizational citizenship behaviors. Reactive and proactive allyship were used to predict psychological safety, workforce engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors. We then used path analysis to determine if workplace capitalization mediated the relationship between either type of allyship and each of the three outcomes. Linear regression analyses showed that reactive and proactive allyship were significantly associated with all three outcomes. Proactive allyship showed a stronger association with psychological safety and workforce engagement, whereas reactive allyship showed a stronger association with organizational citizenship behaviors. Path analyses showed that capitalization mediated the relationship between both types of allyships and all three outcomes. These cross-sectional findings provide preliminary evidence that workplace allyship may function as an important organizational resource that promotes psychological safety, workforce engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors among LGBTQ+ employees. By fostering supportive environments in which employees feel comfortable sharing positive experiences, allyship may contribute to more inclusive, collaborative, and effective organizational cultures. Furthermore, the findings identify capitalization as a potential relational mechanism through which allyship influences positive workplace outcomes.
Department
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Dept. of Psychology