Enabling Leaders by Disabling Limits: A Scoping Review of Choice Architecture Interventions in Leadership Selection

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Abstract
Leadership positions remain disproportionately occupied by individuals from historically privileged groups despite decades of organisational diversity initiatives. Traditional interventions focusing on attitude change, such as unconscious bias training, show limited sustained effects on selection decisions. This suggests that modifying individual cognition is insufficient when environmental factors (time pressures, organisational constraints, and the flexibility to justify preferences post-hoc) shape selection behaviours. An alternative approach focuses on redesigning decision-making environments rather than attempting to change decision-makers’ attitudes through training or explicit diversity messaging. This scoping review systematically maps 37 studies examining environmental (or choice architecture) interventions to leadership selection processes. Following Joanna Briggs Institute scoping review methodology and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, studies were synthesised using two behavioural science frameworks: one identifying which behavioural barriers interventions target, and another categorising the intervention techniques employed. Three main findings emerge. First, interventions constraining decision-maker discretion by requiring commitment to evaluation criteria before reviewing applicants and establishing accountability mechanisms demonstrated more consistent positive effects than information-based approaches targeting attitudes. Second, framing interventions around decision quality (identity-concealed) outperformed framing around diversity goals (identity-conscious). Third, a conversion problem was identified whereby interventions found effective at earlier selection stages (application and shortlisting) frequently failed to translate into hiring or promotion outcomes, suggesting integrated cross-stage interventions are necessary to increase leadership diversity. Overall, findings provide a framework identifying which intervention techniques are effective, for whom, and under what conditions, while highlighting critical research gaps. Practical implications and future research directions are discussed.

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