Vulnerability, defined as being physically or emotionally wounded is typically perceived as an undesirable human condition associated with defenselessness, criticism, and failure and often construed with behaviours best repressed. In contrast to this widely acknowledged understanding and the increasing redundancy of the heroic models of leadership, the current perspective reframes vulnerability as positive: manifest in the willingness to be honest and open, accepting one’s fallibility, and abandon the pursuit for unattainable perfection. This systematic review sought to unravel the core themes associated with vulnerability in leadership from well-established sources of literature and also, propose future directions to draw the contours and possibilities of this nascent area. Strictly toeing the PRISMA 2020 framework for systematic reviews, this study involved a constant dialectic process, sourcing literature published over the last two decades, across six reputed databases with a specific focus on reports involving the leader/leadership context only. A rigorous content analysis aided the delineation of five distinct themes associated with vulnerability in leadership along with a configuration of antecedents, deterrents and outcomes of such expressions of vulnerability by leaders. Also, future directions drafted in an interrogative format along with directive implications towards leadership development were identified in line with the clearly formulated research questions that drove the review.
