Rebellion against resilience? The experience of women entrepreneurs in the context of poly-crisis

Mona Itani; Fawaz Rayan; Ramzi Fathallah; Shintaro Okazaki; Dima Jamali

doi:10.1177/02662426251333689

Rebellion against resilience? The experience of women entrepreneurs in the context of poly-crisis

Mona Itani^*, Fawaz Rayan, Ramzi Fathallah, Shintaro Okazaki, Dima Jamali

^*Corresponding author for this work

Marketing : King's Business School

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Utilising a qualitative approach, this article draws on the experiences of 20 women entrepreneurs operating in a constrained context who were already adapting to ongoing adversity when an acute disaster, the 2020 Beirut blast, occurred. The article expands the study of entrepreneurial resilience under prolonged adversity to reveal new insights on resilience fatigue, rebellion against resilience, and entrepreneurial rebellion. The findings indicate that in the context of poly-crisis marked by a lack of governmental and external support amid an acute event, established women entrepreneurs can act as change agents, transforming negative feelings of prolonged frustration, mistrust, hopelessness and denial into rebellion against the dysfunctional system. In so doing, they create transformational opportunities that enable their businesses and the surrounding ecosystem to thrive and flourish.

Original language	English
Journal	INTERNATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS JOURNAL
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/02662426251333689
Publication status	Accepted/In press - 25 Mar 2025

Keywords

esilience
gender
entrepreneurship
adversity,
agency
extreme contexts

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Cite this

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title = "Rebellion against resilience? The experience of women entrepreneurs in the context of poly-crisis",

abstract = "Utilising a qualitative approach, this article draws on the experiences of 20 women entrepreneurs operating in a constrained context who were already adapting to ongoing adversity when an acute disaster, the 2020 Beirut blast, occurred. The article expands the study of entrepreneurial resilience under prolonged adversity to reveal new insights on resilience fatigue, rebellion against resilience, and entrepreneurial rebellion. The findings indicate that in the context of poly-crisis marked by a lack of governmental and external support amid an acute event, established women entrepreneurs can act as change agents, transforming negative feelings of prolonged frustration, mistrust, hopelessness and denial into rebellion against the dysfunctional system. In so doing, they create transformational opportunities that enable their businesses and the surrounding ecosystem to thrive and flourish.",

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T1 - Rebellion against resilience? The experience of women entrepreneurs in the context of poly-crisis

AU - Itani, Mona

AU - Rayan, Fawaz

AU - Fathallah, Ramzi

AU - Okazaki, Shintaro

AU - Jamali, Dima

PY - 2025/3/25

Y1 - 2025/3/25

N2 - Utilising a qualitative approach, this article draws on the experiences of 20 women entrepreneurs operating in a constrained context who were already adapting to ongoing adversity when an acute disaster, the 2020 Beirut blast, occurred. The article expands the study of entrepreneurial resilience under prolonged adversity to reveal new insights on resilience fatigue, rebellion against resilience, and entrepreneurial rebellion. The findings indicate that in the context of poly-crisis marked by a lack of governmental and external support amid an acute event, established women entrepreneurs can act as change agents, transforming negative feelings of prolonged frustration, mistrust, hopelessness and denial into rebellion against the dysfunctional system. In so doing, they create transformational opportunities that enable their businesses and the surrounding ecosystem to thrive and flourish.

AB - Utilising a qualitative approach, this article draws on the experiences of 20 women entrepreneurs operating in a constrained context who were already adapting to ongoing adversity when an acute disaster, the 2020 Beirut blast, occurred. The article expands the study of entrepreneurial resilience under prolonged adversity to reveal new insights on resilience fatigue, rebellion against resilience, and entrepreneurial rebellion. The findings indicate that in the context of poly-crisis marked by a lack of governmental and external support amid an acute event, established women entrepreneurs can act as change agents, transforming negative feelings of prolonged frustration, mistrust, hopelessness and denial into rebellion against the dysfunctional system. In so doing, they create transformational opportunities that enable their businesses and the surrounding ecosystem to thrive and flourish.

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KW - gender

KW - entrepreneurship

KW - adversity,

KW - agency

KW - extreme contexts

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DO - 10.1177/02662426251333689

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JF - INTERNATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS JOURNAL

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Rebellion against resilience? The experience of women entrepreneurs in the context of poly-crisis

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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