Ignatian Spirituality as a Foundation for Jesuit Leadership and Human Flourishing in India: A Systematic Review

Jesuit leadership, grounded in Ignatian spirituality, emphasizes values such as cura personalis (care for the whole person), accompaniment, discernment, and magis (the pursuit of excellence), which together foster holistic human development and wellbeing. While these principles are widely applied across Jesuit educational, healthcare, and organizational settings, systematic evidence linking Ignatian leadership with outcomes of human flourishing remains limited. This study presents a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature published between 2020 and 2025 to examine how Ignatian spirituality functions as a formative foundation for Jesuit leadership and how these leadership practices contribute to wellbeing and human flourishing, with particular relevance to the Indian context. Following PRISMA 2009 guidelines, a comprehensive search was conducted across five databases-Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Google Scholar-resulting in the inclusion of forty-five eligible studies. The reviewed literature was appraised using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool and synthesized through thematic analysis. Findings reveal that Ignatian spirituality functions as a formative framework for leadership development, with practices of cura personalis and accompaniment enhancing emotional, psychological, and spiritual wellbeing, while magis and reflective discernment promote ethical excellence, resilience, and purposeful growth. Overall, the review demonstrates that Jesuit leadership supports integrative human flourishing by aligning ethical reflection, compassionate service, and institutional mission. The study highlights the need for future empirical research employing validated wellbeing measures to further examine Ignatian leadership constructs across diverse cultural and institutional contexts.