For several decades, the boards of directors have been relatively homogeneous groups consisting of white old men (the so-called ‘good-old boys’). This static and apparently immutable feature has been changed recently, as social movements and the evolution of corporate law and good governance codes promoted an increasing diversity in the boardroom. In parallel with the diffusion of more diverse boards, leadership and governance scholars have started to analyze the consequences of board diversity. Based on the idea that members’ diversity increases group experiences and viewpoints, most scholars argued that higher board diversity positively affects board decisions and firm outcomes. However, despite the soundness of this perspective and the number of previous studies, the empirical evidence provides only partial, mixed and inconclusive findings. Building on these premises, we did a systematic and interdisciplinary literature review aimed at taking stock of our understanding of board diversity’s antecedents and consequences. Our analysis and critical assessment of 184 studies synthesizes major results, identifies main gaps, and highlights important avenues for further research. Finally, we outline several ways to overcome current (theoretical and methodological) barriers and further advance research on board diversity.

几十年来，董事会一直是相对同质的群体，由白人老人（所谓的“好老男孩”）组成。随着社会运动以及公司法和良好治理准则的演变促进了董事会的日益多元化，这种静态且显然一成不变的特征最近发生了变化。在董事会多元化的同时，领导和治理学者也开始分析董事会多元化的后果。基于成员的多样性增加群体经验和观点的观点，大多数学者认为更高的董事会多样性会对董事会决策和公司结果产生积极影响。然而，尽管这种观点和先前研究的数量是合理的，但经验证据仅提供了部分、混合和不确定的发现。基于这些前提，我们进行了系统的跨学科文献综述，旨在评估我们对董事会多元化的前因后果的理解。我们对 184 项研究的分析和批判性评估综合了主要结果，确定了主要差距，并突出了进一步研究的重要途径。最后，我们概述了克服当前（理论和方法）障碍并进一步推进董事会多样性研究的几种方法。