AbstractA critical quality moment is a situation where the next event to happen will determine whether the outcome is good or bad. People who are present in the situation could either engage and intervene or keep silent. Either a verbal intervention might be required to halt a causal chain of events that can lead to a negative outcome or the moment might offer an opportunity to do good by creating a positive outcome. Critical quality moments put communication at work to the test. If speaking up is normal and safe, then it is more likely that someone will do so. If the shared assumption is that becoming verbally involved is a career risk, then people are likely to remain silent. When many people are present during a critical quality moment, their pacification due to bystander effects is a risk.