Women constitute a minority in most military organizations, and previous research indicates that women face several barriers that affect both their careers and well-being in the organization. In the Swedish Armed Forces women were admitted to all services and branches with the same rights as men in 1989, but despite that there are now only 7 % female officers, and 17 % women in total in the organization. This study aims to examine the reasons for the minority of women at the higher positions and whether this can be understood from the factors identified by previous research, which also constitute the theoretical framework used in this study. The study is conducted on the basis of interviews with 12 female soldiers and officers in the Swedish Armed Forces, where women's thoughts and experiences about their careers and situation in the organization were sought.
The results of the study show that there are factors influenced by both the organization and by the individual themselves that affect women's careers. The factors according to the respondents that have the most impact are negative attitudes and treatment from men, the organization's culture and jargon, as well as difficulties in combining a family life with work in the defense sector, and lack of support and role models.