Sotilaita vai seikkailijoita? : varusmiespalveluksen johtajakoulutuksen merkityksiä naisille uran ja johtamisosaamisen kannalta
This thesis examines women in military leadership training in Finnish military service. The aim
of this empirical qualitative PhD study is to explore the meanings of military leadership training to young women from a career and leadership competency viewpoint. The study reply to
the following research questions:
1) How do women describe the meanings of military leadership training to their career?
- Why did the women voluntarily participate in military service?
- What did the women tell they pursued while participating in voluntary military leadership training from a career point of view?
- What kind of factors for early career advantages or obstacles did the narratives include
for the women?
- What kind of agency did the female conscripts produce in their narratives in relation to
voluntary military leadership training?
2) How do the women describe the meanings of military leadership training to their leadership
competency?
Leadership development can work against gender discrimination in leadership and career by
giving the woman the credentials of a competent professional. Military leadership development
can be a trigger for an individual’s career and may also help women to break the glass ceiling in
work life. Consequently, studying publicly funded military leadership training from a female
point of view is important because it can be used to influence leadership competency in the
future labor force and promote gender equality. This study understands military leadership
training as a process which primary aim is to develop participants’ competency, which is needed to successfully perform military leadership tasks. The study follows a social constructionist
approach and adopts narrative methodology while investigating the topic. The data was collected from one military class by interviewing all women from two platoons, who had been
selected to undergo leadership training (N=45). The data consists of biographical narrative interviews. The study uses the Greimas actant model (1980) to analyze the data. In this study the
Atlas.ti-programm was used to support the data analysis. This study furthers understanding of
leadership training by voicing the female point of view in military context. Empirically this
study produced new information of sensemaking to young womens´careers, women’s in military leadership training and leadership competency. Furthermore, the modalities as well as
what kinds and degrees of agency – strong or weak – women constructed in their stories was
examined. As a result of the study, four different, individual and unique career story types were
created. They are called: Toward a Military Career-story, Gap year-story, Adventure-story and
Not a Princess-story. The results of my study show how this phenomenon encountered by
women is experienced and constructed by them and what kind of meanings they give to it. My
results show that sensemaking of leadership training is a multidimensional phenomenon. Additionally, the findings point out that change in leadership competency during the military leadership training is a process where women construct the developmental change they experienced
as part of their whole life context. The training is also connected to the identity construction of
young women.
...
Alternative title
Varusmiespalveluksen johtajakoulutuksen merkityksiä naisille uran ja johtamisosaamisen kannaltaPublisher
University of JyväskyläISBN
978-951-39-7138-0ISSN Search the Publication Forum
1457-1986Keywords
leadership leadership training military leadership training competency early-stage career gender story narratives Finland johtaminen johtajuus johtamiskoulutus johtajakoulutus naiset sukupuoli urakehitys työura sotilasjohtaminen varusmiespalvelus sukupuolisensitiivisyys puolustusvoimat varusmiehet maanpuolustustyö toimijuus
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