The Trust-Ubuntu Nexus: Redefining Collaboration in School Leadership in the Free State Province

SOLOMON CHIBAYA^1,2*Ntombizandile Gcelu²

• ¹Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa
• ²University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa

Introduction: The world has undergone significant economic, social, and political changes over the past decade, resulting in paradigmatic shifts in leadership structures that influence trust. In South Africa, trust has been affected by the shifts in national, provincial and school leadership structures. This reality shifts the issue of trust into focus, but its relationship to Ubuntu and collaboration in school leadership is scarcely explored. The primary objective of this paper is to investigate the relationship between trust and Ubuntu in selected schools in the Free State Province, specifically in the context of collaboration in school leadership. The paper explores the trust-ubuntu nexus by analysing the conceptualisation, experiences, and practices of school principals, departmental heads, and teachers. Conceptually, the nexus is formed by linking two key theoretical frameworks, providing a framework that is used analytically with both rational and ethical dimensions. Method: This qualitative multiple case study, grounded in social constructivism, explored trust and Ubuntu in four selected schools and collected data through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The data, after being analysed using the six steps of thematic analysis by Braun and Clarke, and the theoretical frameworks of Trust theory, as well as Ubuntu, an African Philosophy, resulted in several key findings. Results: Among the findings was the indication that contestation of professional and personal views, communication, leadership styles and ethics were the main components in the nexus between trust and Ubuntu. Open communication by school leaders was shown to promote trust and, as a tenet of Ubuntu, enhanced collaboration. For its theoretical contribution, the combination of Trust theory and Ubuntu forms the trust-ubuntu nexus, where Ubuntu's emphasis on communal responsibility, ethical values, and collective well-being aligns with socio-cognitive needs for reliability and good alignment in trust relationships. The limitations, however, are that Ubuntu interpretations vary across different contexts and that trust is a dynamic concept. Conclusion: We recommend that schools focus on Ubuntu beyond policy expectations to foster trust and promote collaboration. Conclusively, the trust-Ubuntu nexus is interactive such that trust without Ubuntu is compliance-based and brittle, while Ubuntu without trust is idealistic and ineffective.