{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,10]],"date-time":"2025-12-10T13:46:16Z","timestamp":1765374376382,"version":"3.46.0"},"reference-count":47,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,10]],"date-time":"2025-12-10T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1765324800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Behavioral Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The study delves into the experiences of Arab\u2013Israeli academic leaders during the Iron Swords War, revealing their emotional responses, coping mechanisms, and reflections on leadership amidst the conflict. The study highlights a range of intense negative emotions experienced by the leaders, including fear, anxiety, helplessness, and despair, reflecting a state of secondary traumatic stress. Despite facing significant challenges, some leaders demonstrated proactivity through their work duties and support from Jewish friends. However, a prevailing sense of pessimism about the future and feelings of isolation and silencing were also prominent themes in their narratives. The results underscore the complex interplay between personal experiences and the broader socio-political context, emphasizing the need for resilience-building initiatives in academia during times of crisis. The study provides valuable insights into the unique challenges faced by minority Arab academic leaders in higher education during prolonged conflict, shedding light on the importance of support systems and leadership development to navigate the complexities of wartime environments.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bs15121710","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,10]],"date-time":"2025-12-10T12:20:57Z","timestamp":1765369257000},"page":"1710","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Arab\u2013Israeli Leaders in Israeli Higher Education During the Iron Swords War"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4138-6360","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sima","family":"Zach","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate School, Levinsky-Wingate Academic College, Campus Wingate, Netanya 4290200, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mahmood","family":"Sindiani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate School, Levinsky-Wingate Academic College, Campus Wingate, Netanya 4290200, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,10]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"217","DOI":"10.1108\/IJPL-10-2019-0065","article-title":"Leading at the edge of chaos: Historical perspectives on the qualities of leadership for cultural diversity and conflict resolution","volume":"16","author":"Alfoqahaa","year":"2020","journal-title":"International Journal of Public Leadership"},{"key":"ref_2","first-page":"581","article-title":"Reflections on interpretive adequacy in qualitative research","volume":"Vol. 4","author":"Altheide","year":"2011","journal-title":"The SAGE handbook of qualitative research"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Amidror, Y. 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