Crisis Leadership Adaptability: Systematic Literature Review
Vincent Balikudembe1*, Bosco Amerit1, Robert Mugabe1, Rogers Mwesigwa1
1Department of Business Administration, Makerere University Business School, Kampala, Uganda.
*Corresponding Author
ABSTRACT
Crisis leadership among global actors is a growing phenomenon in both the developed and the developing world. It is characterised by increasing failures in collaboration, innovation and adaptation to change as exemplified by the fuzzy global response to climatic change. It is critical that leaders learn to quickly adapt in times of crisis. Present research effort in mainstreaming academic discourse on leadership crisis adaptability (CLA) appears fairly unclear. Accordingly,
Purpose: This systematic literature review sought to examine the existing body of knowledge on crisis leadership adaptability, with a focus on identifying the antecedents and mapping out the status of methodologies, theories, and research gaps that are associated with the study of CLA.
Methodology: Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework, a total of 41 articles were selected for analysis.
Findings: The findings suggest that social factors such as communication and emotional intelligence dominate as the antecedents, while the economic and cultural factors, community engagement and social capital have been barely considered in the study of CLA. Theoretically, current research on CLA appears to be anchored on largely three theories; the grounded theory, dynamic capabilities theory and contingency theory. Case studies and mixed methods emerged as the dominant approaches preferred for tshe study of CLA. Accordingly, there are glaring gaps in the consideration of cultural factors as antecedents, particularly in the African and South American regions. A number of recommendations are suggested.
Keywords: Crisis leadership, leadership adaptability, crisis management, leadership flexibility