Navigating the Safety Whistleblowing Dilemma: Configurational Recipes of Organizational Policies and Employee Psychology

Abstract: To promote safety whistleblowing, organizations rely on two policy levers: reward and protection. However, their effectiveness depends on employees' psychological profiles, an aspect overlooked in prior research. Drawing on sensemaking theory, this study examines how these policies interact with psychological factors identified through employee interviews. A fuzzy-set QCA of scenario-based experiments reveals three configurational pathways, with perceived seriousness necessary across all configurations. (1) Protection-driven approach: with strong protection but no rewards, whistleblowing is mainly triggered by high perceived seriousness. (2) Reward-driven approach: when rewards exist but protection is weak, whistleblowing is more likely among individuals with high perceived seriousness, high risk aversion, strong prosocial motivation, and strong face concern. (3) Policy-independent approach: when both rewards and protection are absent, whistleblowing is more likely among individuals with high perceived seriousness, strong prosocial motivation, and low risk aversion. Asymmetric analysis shows that rewards may increase silence among individuals with high face concern. Key words: Safety Whistleblowing; Reward; Protection; Psychological Profiles; Configurational Pathways; Sensemaking theory摘要：为推动安全举报（safety whistleblowing）工作开展，组织通常依赖奖励（Reward）与保护（Protection）两类政策工具。然而，其实施效果取决于员工的心理特质，这一维度在既往研究中被忽视。本研究基于意义建构理论（sensemaking theory），探讨上述两类政策如何与员工访谈中识别出的心理因素相互作用。通过情景实验开展模糊集定性比较分析（fuzzy-set QCA），本研究识别出三类组态路径（configurational pathways），且感知严重性在所有组态中均为必要条件。（1）保护驱动型路径：当保护机制完善但无奖励时，举报行为主要由较高的感知严重性触发。（2）奖励驱动型路径：当存在奖励但保护机制薄弱时，具备高感知严重性、高风险规避倾向、强亲社会动机以及强面子顾虑的个体更易实施举报行为。（3）政策独立型路径：当奖励与保护机制均缺失时，具备高感知严重性、强亲社会动机以及低风险规避倾向的个体更易实施举报行为。非对称分析结果显示，奖励可能会加剧高面子顾虑个体的沉默（即不进行举报）。 关键词：安全举报；奖励；保护；心理特质（psychological profiles）；组态路径；意义建构理论