Higher education institutions face intensifying

The gap

Evidence profile

Sourced from the abstract and recommendations and future work and stated challenges of the source papers, classified as general, spanning 3 journals.

Supporting evidence — 4 representative gaps

• Unlocking Organizational Sustainability in Schools: The Role of Human Resource Competence, Workplace Spirituality, and Sustainable Leadership (2026) · Inkubis : Jurnal Ekonomi dan Bisnis · doi

  However, their interrelationships in secondary education remain insufficiently explored Objective: This study aims to examine the direct influence of human resource competency (HRC) on organizational sustainability (OS), sustainable leadership (SL) on organizational sustainability (OS), HRC on workplace spirituality (WPS), WPS having a significant influence on sustainable leadership (SL), and the indirect influence of HRC on organizational sustainability (OS) through WPS.

  generalabstract
  Keywords: influence organizational sustainability sustainable leadership interrelationships secondary education remain insufficiently explored objective aims examine direct
• THE SUSTAINABLE LEADERSHIP & SUSTAINABLE PERFORMANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION: MEDIATING ROLE OF SUSTAINABLE CULTURE (2026) · Journal of Social Research Development · doi

  The institutions need to make an investment in developing sustainable leadership through integration of sustainability-focused competencies into leadership and succession planning that may ensure that current and future leaders have vision and ethical orientation, to enact the sustainable performance. 2. The institutional policies and governance systems must strategically foster the sustainability culture through the integrated implantation of sustainability value to the mission statements, Journal of Social Research Development, Volume 7, Issue 1, MARCH, 2026 9 Khan & Mughal … Sustainable Leadership & strategic plans, and curriculum development, that sustainability becomes the collective and internalized practice for success. 3. The institutions are supposed to promote extensive stakeholder participation that is achieved over faculty, student involvement in sustainability-related decision-making and activities, as participatory practices enhance cultural ownership and improve leadership commitment to long-term performance results. 4. The institutions need to adopt the unremitting monitoring and evaluation frameworks of the sustainability performance, relying on feedback and learning systems to solidify sustainable culture and empower leaders to modify the approaches to the arising environmental, societal, and institutional diverse issues. REFERENCES Cho, C., & Kao, R. (2022). Developing Sustainable Workplace through Leadership: Perspectives of THE Transformational Leadership and Organizational Citizenship Behaviour. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article ID: 924091. Eustachio, P., Caldana, F., & Filho, W. (2023). Sustainability leadership: Conceptual foundations and research landscape. Journal of Cleaner Production, 137761, 137761. Eustachio, P., Salvia, A. L., Brandli, L., Trevisan, V., Barbir, J., & Caldana, F. (2024). Implementing sustainability in teaching: Role of sustainability leadership and transformational leadership in context of higher education institutions. Sustainable Development, 32(5), 5331–5347. Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Structural Equation Models with Unobservable Variables and Measurement Error: Algebra and Statistics. Journal of Marketing Research, 18, 382-388. Godemann, J., Bebbington, J., Herzig, C., & Moon, J. (2014). The Higher education and sustainable development. Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 27(2), 218-233. Hadhrami, A., & Rosmelisa, Y. (2024). Impact of sustainable leadership on employee's competency and sustainable development in private HEI. Global Business and Management Research: An International Journal, 16 (4s), 1041-1053. Hair, J. F., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Gudergan, S. P. (2018). Advanced Issues in Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015).

  generalrecommendationsevidence 5/5
  Keywords: leadership sustainable sustainability journal development institutions performance need developing leaders institutional systems culture issues transformational
• Reimagining Academic Leadership: Introducing the Leadership Development Theory in Higher Education (LDTHE) (2026) · International Journal for Leadership in Learning · doi

  The LDTHE opens several avenues for future research in higher education leadership scholarship. First, empirical studies should test and refine the theory across diverse disciplinary, institutional, and national contexts. Comparative research across faculties such as medicine, education, engineering, and the social sciences could clarify which elements of the theory are broadly applicable and which require contextual adaptation. Second, longitudinal research is needed to examine how leadership competencies and capacities evolve over time, particularly in relation to wellbeing, equity, and leadership sustainability. Studies that follow leaders across career stages could provide insight into how leadership development trajectories are shaped by institutional culture, governance arrangements, and policy environments. 111 Third, mixed-methods research that combines qualitative inquiry with psychometric and organisational measures could deepen understanding of leadership development processes and outcomes. Such approaches could examine how leadership development informed by the LDTHE influences outcomes such as leader wellbeing, equity advancement, institutional resilience, and innovation. Finally, future scholarship should explore how the LDTHE engages with emerging global challenges, including digital transformation, climate change, sustainability transitions, and decolonisation. Examining leadership development in relation to these challenges will be essential for ensuring the continued relevance of the theory in rapidly evolving higher education landscapes.

  generalfuture workevidence 5/5
  Keywords: leadership development ldthe education theory across institutional future higher scholarship examine relation wellbeing equity sustainability
• Reimagining Academic Leadership: Introducing the Leadership Development Theory in Higher Education (LDTHE) (2026) · International Journal for Leadership in Learning · doi

  Higher education institutions face intensifying expectations to advance sustainability, equity, and social responsibility. Leadership approaches that explicitly integrate sustainability, equity, and leader wellbeing as core dimensions of effectiveness remain fragmented and underdeveloped. There is a need for context-sensitive leadership theories that reflect the complexities of academic leadership.

  generalstated challengesevidence 5/5
  Keywords: higher education institutions face intensifying expectations advance sustainability

Questions about this gap