Abstract
M.Phil.
Orientation: Personal experience of leadership within a religious community in
Southern Africa and a preliminary literature review indicates that Personal
Interpersonal and Professional Leadership (PIPL) mastery in Southern Africa needs
an African spiritual consciousness (ASC) to strengthen its relevance.
Conceptualising ASC requires an immersion into the narrative world of an African
person to discover insights that can inform PIPL mastery within this context.
Research purpose: the aim of the study is to conceptualise ASC within PIPL using
the life history of an African in order to discover African insights on PIPL mastery.
Motivation for the study: Current leadership literature on PIPL mastery does not
sufficiently embrace ASC. This gap poses a challenge to the facilitation of PIPL
mastery and potential realisation in the complex Southern African leadership context.
Research design: The study employed a modernist qualitative methodology and
constructivist paradigm as its research approach. A case study was used as a
research strategy and a life history was used as a qualitative research technique.
Purposeful sampling was employed in finding a storyteller and data was collected
using solicited and unsolicited sources.
Main findings: The study yielded a life history with a rich and varied description of
how an African person experience of PIPL mastery. An analysis of the collected data
revealed themes that can inform PIPL mastery with insights from an African
experience and understanding of PIPL mastery.
Practical implications: The conclusions of the study raise awareness on the
particular themes for consideration within the PIPL perspective and necessitate a
further inquiry into the journey of PIPL mastery from an ASC.
Anticipated contribution: The study provides some understanding of how an
African person understands and experiences PIPL mastery. This study adds to the
relatively small base of qualitative research available on ASC and contributes to
literature within PIPL programme by highlighting the potential themes for further
exploration and research.
Key Words: Personal Interpersonal and Professional Leadership (PIPL), Mastery,
Africa(n), African Spiritual Consciousness, life-history, identity and facilitation,
connectedness, grounded theory, African worldview storyteller and qualitative
research