EXPLORING SELF-LEADERSHIP PRACTICES AMONG PRINCIPALS AND HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS IN ZIMBABWE

Abstract

This study explored the manifestation of self-leadership in practice among high school
principals and Heads of Departments (HODs) in Bindura District, Zimbabwe. It was
undertaken against the backdrop of persistent challenges facing public schools, including
resource shortages, declining staff morale, inadequate leadership preparation, and
increasing institutional pressures. Although self-leadership has been widely recognised
as a strategy for strengthening organisational effectiveness, limited research has
examined how it is enacted within Zimbabwean school contexts. The study therefore
aimed to explore how self-leadership manifests in the daily leadership practices of school
managers within resource-constrained educational environments. Guided by the
interpretivist paradigm, the study adopted a qualitative case study design. Data were
collected through semi-structured interviews with 12 participants, comprising four
principals and eight HODs purposively selected from four public high schools in Bindura
District. Data were analysed thematically using Braun and Clarke’s six-step framework.
The findings revealed that self-leadership manifested through collaborative teamwork,
delegation, context-responsive decision-making, innovative resource utilisation, and selfregulation.
These practices enabled leaders to distribute responsibilities, strengthen
organisational adaptability, sustain school operations, and manage emotional and
professional demands within challenging school environments. However, the findings
also revealed tensions associated with emotional labour, accountability pressures,
resource limitations, and organisational constraints. The study contributes to educational
leadership scholarship by extending self-leadership theory beyond individual selfregulation
to include collaborative, adaptive, and context-responsive leadership practices
within under-resourced schools. Therefore, it recommends strengthening collaborative
leadership cultures, distributed leadership, emotional well-being support, adaptive
decision-making, and innovation-oriented leadership development programmes. The
study concludes that self-leadership is a multidimensional and contextually embedded
process essential for sustainable and effective school management in contemporary
educational environments.

Keywords: accountability, collaboration, delegation, innovation, school management,
self-leadership, Zimbabwe