Inclusive Relational Leadership in University Public Relations: A Systematic Integrative Review

Abstract

This systematic integrative review examined how leader-member exchange (LMX) explained relational leadership in university public relations. University communication units relied on rapid coordination, accurate information, employee voice, psychological safety, and continuous innovation, yet most LMX research had developed outside public relations. A bounded protocol was applied to eleven peer-reviewed LMX studies published from 2022 to 2024 and identified during an earlier phase of the research project. Each study was re-audited for bibliographic validity, relevance, methodological clarity, and conceptual contribution, and the corpus was synthesized thematically. Six themes emerged: relational competence and candor; communication resources and engagement; employee voice and psychological safety; support for innovation; justice and LMX differentiation; and resilience, exhaustion, and retention. The review generated an Inclusive LMX-Based Public Relations Leadership Model in which equitable high-quality exchanges provided communication resources, voice, safety, and innovation, while organizational justice and relationship differentiation functioned as boundary conditions. The findings advanced a communication-centered interpretation of LMX and produced five propositions for future qualitative, multilevel, and longitudinal research in university public relations teams.