Neuroadaptive Leadership Transition Theory: A Multilevel Examination of Identity, Regulation and Systemic Legitimacy Among Latino Middle Managers in U.S. Corporate Contexts
Abstract
Leadership transition represents one of the most consequential yet theoretically underdeveloped phases of leadership development. Traditional transition models largely conceptualize adaptation as a linear progression through role adjustment, competency acquisition, or identity experimentation. However, these approaches insufficiently account for the regulatory dynamics through which leaders sustain adaptive capacity under conditions of identity salience, relational evaluation, and structural legitimacy. The research examines leadership transition among Latino middle managers in U.S. corporate environments through a convergent mixed-methods design integrating quantitative survey data (n = 518) and qualitative interviews analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) (n = 16). Quantitative analyses examined relationships among perceived readiness, adaptability, cultural integration, and transition satisfaction, while qualitative narratives explored lived experiences of identity negotiation, legitimacy signaling, and relational belonging during leadership transition. Findings indicate that leadership transition is not solely shaped by individual readiness or competency development. Rather, adaptive capacity appears associated with the alignment of internal regulatory stability, relational affirmation, and perceived structural legitimacy. These patterns informed the development of Neuroadaptive Leadership Transition Theory (NLTT), which conceptualizes leadership transition as a recursive regulatory process in which executive regulation, socio-emotional integration, identity reconstruction, and structural legitimacy interact to stabilize or destabilize adaptive capacity. Therefore, leadership transition is not a stage to be completed but a regulatory equilibrium to be negotiated. The theory is operationalized through the Neuro-Integrative Adaptive Leadership Transition (NIALT) Framework, which identifies five interdependent domains of adaptive capacity: Neurocognitive Stability, Adaptive Agency, Relational Resonance, Equity Perception, and Cultural–Emotional Integration. NLTT specifies the regulatory architecture of leadership transition, while the NIALT Framework operationalizes this architecture through these domains. Together, they provide a multilevel structure for examining leadership transition as an interaction among regulatory processes, identity dynamics, relational conditions, and structural environments. The research reframes leadership transition as a regulatory phenomenon and uses convergent mixed methods to integrate quantitative patterns and lived experience, informing the Applied NIALT Implementation Framework for leadership development and organizational alignment.
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