Can women leaders bring their whole self to work? The identity work and agency of Indonesian women leaders in constructing an ‘authentic self’

This study analyses how authenticity is constructed among Indonesian women leaders and their agentic capacity for negotiating their authentic self. This study contributes to the theorisation of ‘authentic leadership’, examining its gendered nature and doing so in an underexplored non-Western context. As a practical implication, it is essential for organisations to not impose women leaders’ subjectivity through numerous organisational practices as well as their disciplinary power.