During EA, the risk of losing a roll on a check has been really decreased. It was a pure 50/50 thing on day one, but after a number of updates I don't think I ever got a bad roll.
I also got the impression that some checks got progressively easier as EA went on.
That said, did you deactivated the bullshit option "Karmic dice" which is on by default?
Will have to try that. Since the game is releasing in a month, I'll wait until then.
People want the illusion they are being challenged while not actually being challenged.
Well fumbling a dice roll is part of the charm in D&D but sadly the culture in gaming conditioned min maxing rewards, making this a lost novelty.
We've reached a point where rpgs, instead of being simulations of a tabletop experience, are copies of said simulation.
That was always the case.
Fumbling a dice roll in tabletop is fun because the DM and the players all have an input in what the scene actually looks like. The DM can describe how the environment or luck conspired to fuck up your attack. Or the player themself can interject, adding their understanding of their character to just how they manage to fumble a social check.
In RPGs, fumbling a dice is fun in combat situations. Because computers are good at creating tactical challenges in an emergent fashion. You miss an attack, now you gotta deal with it. Failing a social check however, is just a failure. And, possibly, a reload.
The ideal solution to social situations is to make skill check failures (AND successes) less than straightforward. Sometimes failing can be advantageous. Sometimes success merely opens up the possibility to say the right thing. Either way is work intensive, and it's special when the devs actually do it.
Ultimately it will be up to the player wether they are willing to take failures in stride. Which is the best mentality overall, not for the game but for the player themselves. But that's besides the point, which is game design. The simplest and likely best solution for CRPGs is to make it so success is within your grasp as long as your character/party is built for it. Couldn't do a speech check because the PC is alone right now and good at knowledge checks? It's easier to say tough luck then to failing a check that was impossible to miss without a critical miss.