Neurodivergencies in the workplace: a PRISMA systematic review of policy effectiveness and employee well-being
Alessandro Mancini, Serena Rubini, Eleonora Veglianti, Michele Scandola, Andrea CeschiPurpose
This study advances a configurational human resource management (HRM) perspective on neurodivergent inclusion. Rather than conceptualizing workplace adjustments as isolated accommodations, we examine how policy architectures are structured within HRM systems and how their alignment shapes multidimensional well-being and employment outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, we systematically reviewed 24 studies (2015–2025) and identified 128 distinct workplace interventions. We combined an adapted thematic synthesis with structured narrative synthesis and descriptive cross-intervention outcome mapping to examine patterns of policy configuration and outcome convergence.
Findings
Ten themes were abstracted into four interdependent HRM domains: work design and structural alignment; relational and leadership climate; accommodation and support infrastructure; and cultural and intersectional reform. Six outcome clusters emerged, spanning psychological stabilization (burnout, stress), inclusion and psychological safety, performance and retention. All 128 interventions were associated with at least one outcome cluster and 73.4% with multiple clusters (mean = 2.28), indicating systematic cross-cluster alignment. Outcomes rarely appeared in isolation; instead, well-being, belonging and productivity co-occurred within structurally coherent policy bundles.
Research limitations/implications
The predominantly cross-sectional and geographically concentrated evidence base limits causal inference and longitudinal assessment of institutionalization processes.
Practical implications
Effective neurodivergent inclusion requires coordinated human resource architectures that integrate structural design, managerial enactment, and cultural legitimacy rather than discretionary case-by-case flexibility.
Originality/value
The study extends configurational HRM theory by conceptualizing neurodivergent inclusion as an emergent property of aligned and institutionalized policy systems.