Leadership Across Cultures: A Systematic Review of the Influence of National Culture on Transformational and Transactional Leadership Effectiveness

Purpose: This study systematically reviews empirical research on how national culture influences the effectiveness of transformational (TFL) and transactional leadership (TSL). It aims to clarify how cultural values shape the enactment, perception, and outcomes of these leadership styles across diverse contexts. By synthesizing existing findings, the review seeks to identify consistent patterns, contradictions, and gaps in the literature, highlighting where cultural factors strengthen or weaken leadership effectiveness.

Design/Methodology/Approach: A structured search was conducted across four major academic databases, identifying 81 eligible empirical studies. Using a systematic content-analysis approach, each study was coded for leadership style, cultural framework, methodological design, sample characteristics, and performance indicators. This allowed comparison across cultural contexts and the synthesis of cross-study patterns, divergences, and research gaps. The method ensured comprehensive coverage of existing evidence on TFL and TSL in relation to national culture. Findings: Transformational leadership generally enhances employee commitment, job satisfaction, and organizational performance across most cultural contexts, though its expression and strength vary by cultural dimensions. Evidence is mixed regarding its effectiveness in highly collectivist and high power-distance societies, yet TFL remains more consistently beneficial than TSL. Some studies indicate that combining both styles yields complementary advantages. Research remains heavily Western-centric, with limited representation of non-Western, particularly African contexts and insufficient exploration of cultural moderators, gender differences, and multilevel or longitudinal dynamics.

Research Limitations/Implications: The evidence base is predominantly Western, limiting generalizability to non-Western and under-studied cultural contexts. Many studies rely on cross-sectional, single-level, and self-report designs, constraining causal inference and contextual interpretation. Limited attention to cultural moderators, mediators, and gendered dynamics restricts deeper theoretical development. These limitations highlight the need for more diverse samples, longitudinal and multilevel methods, and culturally grounded models to advance understanding of leadership effectiveness across national cultures.

Practical Implications: Findings suggest that transformational leadership offers broad benefits but must be adapted to local cultural values to achieve optimal impact. Leaders should tailor their behaviors to cultural preferences for power distance, collectivism, and uncertainty avoidance, using culturally sensitive communication and influence strategies. Combining transformational and transactional behaviors may be particularly effective in multicultural or global organizations. Organizations should invest in cross-cultural leadership development to enhance global leadership competencies and align leadership practices with cultural expectations.

Social Implications: Understanding how culture shapes leadership effectiveness supports more inclusive and culturally responsive leadership practices. Applying culturally attuned leadership can improve employee well-being, reduce misunderstanding in multicultural teams, and strengthen organizational cohesion in diverse societies. Expanding research beyond Western contexts also promotes more equitable representation of global leadership perspectives, contributing to fairer and more culturally aware leadership development across regions.

Originality/Value: This review advances understanding of how national culture shapes both the practice and effectiveness of TFL and TSL by synthesizing evidence across diverse contexts. It identifies key methodological and contextual gaps, including Western-centric sampling, limited cultural moderators, and lack of multilevel and longitudinal research. The review offers a culturally grounded framework for interpreting leadership effectiveness and proposes directions for developing leadership models that better reflect global cultural diversity.