The predictive role of self-awareness on organisational resilience in the construction sector in Zimbabwe.
Keywords:
authentic leadership, organisational resilience, self-awareness, leadership leadership, construction industryAbstract
This study examines the predictive influence of self-awareness, a core dimension of authentic leadership, on organisational resilience within Zimbabwe’s construction sector. The research was motivated by the sector’s chronic instability, high firm attrition, and operational discontinuities caused by macroeconomic volatility, supply-chain disruption, and skills shortages. Drawing upon Authentic Leadership Theory (ALT) and Organisational Resilience Theory (ORT), the study explores how self-aware leadership behaviour enhances adaptive learning, decision integrity, and recovery capacity. A cross-sectional quantitative design was employed, using data from 353 respondents drawn from a population of approximately 3,000 construction firms. Statistical analysis using structural equation modelling (SEM) established a significant positive relationship between self-awareness and organisational resilience (β =0.417, p < 0.05; R² = 0.63). Findings indicate that leaders who are self-reflective, emotionally intelligent, and behaviourally consistent enable their organisations to anticipate disruptions, manage uncertainty, and sustain continuity during crises. The study contributes to leadership and resilience scholarship by validating self-awareness as a critical behavioural antecedent of resilience in a developing-economy context. It provides actionable insights for leadership development, crisis preparedness, and organisational learning within the construction industry.
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