Towards a social capital theory of resistance to change

Purpose - The aim of the paper is to generate a substantive grounded theory of organizational change and leadership, particularly focusing on the manifestation and management of resistance to change, or what has been more broadly conceptualized as organization inertia. Design/methodology/approach - A grounded theory study, investigating a particular type of change occurring in a variety of South African churches, was conducted using a Straussian approach. A sample of incidents was gathered from 38 in‐depth interviews conducted with ministers who were leading churches of various backgrounds, sizes, and denominations, in four South African provinces. Findings - When analysing the process of church transition from a programme‐based to a cell‐based design, the concept “sense of community” was developed. This concept underscored the manifestation of organization inertia in the churches that were engaged in a process of change. Research limitations/implications - Further exploration of the literature suggests that – compared to other theories of resistance to change – the theory of social capital offers a better explanation of the occurrence of organization inertia in this study. Originality/value - In the light of this paper's discovery, social capital theory is proposed as a new theoretical explanation of resistance to change.