Understanding Inclusive Leadership and Employee Outcomes
A Systematic Literature Review of Relational Mechanisms and Gender Diversity Perspectives
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32832/jm-uika.v17i3.23848Keywords:
Inclusive Leadership, Leader–Employee Relationships, Gender Diversity, Employee Outcomes, Systematic Literature Review.Abstract
Inclusive leadership has gained increasing attention as organizations seek leadership approaches that support diversity, strengthen workplace relationships, and improve employee outcomes. However, existing studies remain fragmented, as they employ diverse theoretical perspectives, examine different relational mechanisms (e.g., psychological safety, trust, and leader–member exchange), and rarely integrate gender considerations and employee outcomes within a unified framework. This study employed a qualitative systematic literature review (SLR) approach following PRISMA guidelines. Articles were retrieved from Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar using predefined search strategies. A total of 25 empirical studies published between 2016–2026 met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed using thematic synthesis. The findings indicate that inclusive leadership positively influences employee outcomes such as engagement, innovative behavior, well-being, performance, and employee voice. These relationships are primarily mediated through mechanisms including psychological safety, leader–member exchange, psychological empowerment, organizational identification, and affective commitment. Social Exchange Theory and LMX emerged as dominant theoretical perspectives. Gender was frequently treated as a contextual variable rather than a central analytical lens. The review reveals considerable conceptual and theoretical fragmentation, with studies often adopting isolated perspectives and single mediation pathways. Conclusion: This review provides an integrative understanding of inclusive leadership through a relational and gender-informed perspective and offers directions for future theoretical development.
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