Leadership, AI Literacy, and Organisational AI Adoption: A Systematic Literature Review and Research Agenda for Pakistan and Emerging Economies

Abstract

Artificial intelligence tools are being taken on by organisations at a rate that outpaces the development of leadership practices and employee literacy for using AI well, in both developed and emerging economies. The paper presents a systematic literature review of the studies on the interface of leadership, AI literacy, and organizational AI adoption, summarizing 30 empirical and review studies, 3 technology adoption theories, and the institutional context of the 2025 National AI Policy in Pakistan. Of the 30 studies, 12 (40%) explicitly model leadership as an antecedent of AI adoption or use, 6 (20%) explicitly conceptualise or measure AI literacy; and only 1 (3%) explicitly models both constructs as a formal mediation chain, although they are not located in the same model, in a 2026 mixed-methods study conducted in Vietnam. This is particularly true for AI-adoption research that focuses on Pakistan, as only five out of 30 studies are conducted in Pakistani organisations, and only one of the five contains an AI-literacy construct – whereas in other countries, such as Nigeria, China, Malaysia, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Jordan, India, and Vietnam, more than five studies contain leadership constructs. Based on the synthesis, the paper introduces a leading integrative framework that connects leadership behaviour, AI literacy and outcomes of AI adoption and outlines a five-question research agenda for empirical studies in Pakistan and similar emerging economies.