Taking the road less travelled: Exploring the link between curiosity and resilience with 1NZSAS
The pivotal question- ‘what goes right?’ in resilience must be explored further. We need to reconstruct resilience- beyond recovery or equanimity and towards capaci-ty for learning and thriving. This research unveils curiosity as a vital enabler for resilience. The relationship is studied in the context of resilience as a holistic, multifaceted and developable capability. The primary aim of this research is to understand ‘what goes right’ for individuals who perform and thrive in ongoing change, ambiguity and significant risks, and to study the contextual conditions enabling their resilience. The overarching re-search question asks: “How is resilience built, sustained and developed to support capacity for thriving?” or put simply, “What goes right?”. The three supporting questions are “In what ways does curiosity serve as a resilience enabler? “What are the heuristics individuals employ to sustain and grow resilient mindsets?”, and “What are the contextual conditions that support access to resilience?”. This research employs the principles of social constructivism as a methodological framework. It uses semi-structured interviews and narratives to capture detailed insights from 35 New Zealand Special Air Service (1NZSAS) members, for whom resilience is a critical value-in-action. The present research extends understanding of and applied ways to resilience, by reconstructing it through the prisms of curiosity. It frames and explores the heu-ristics individuals nurture and rely upon to thrive in and grow through challenges and setbacks. This research also outlines the contextual conditions that enable capacity for resilience in some of the most demanding conditions. The present research presents an integrated model of the findings, using curiosity and resili-ence as the axis that shape, drive and sustain capacity for thriving in ambiguity and change. Further to academic contribution, this thesis offers invaluable contri-butions to practitioners and leaders, as well as individuals willing to broaden and build greater access to resilience.
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