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From Lone Wolf to Collective Action: Increasing Gender Diversity in the Swedish Energy Sector

Lazoroska, Daniela LU and Palm, Jenny LU orcid (2026) In Gender, Work and Organization
Abstract
Despite Sweden's consistently high ranking in international gender-equality indices and a higher-than-average percentage of women in leadership roles, women remain a minority in the Swedish energy sector. This article traces how women, positioned as a minoritized group within this male-dominated field, develop the motivation to collectively challenge systemic inequality. The aim of the study is to examine how individual experiences of isolation and underrepresentation can give rise to new forms of collective action, leading to organized efforts to promote inclusion and diversity. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 12 women in managerial positions and observations from sectoral events, we analyze how professional identity is reshaped... (More)
Despite Sweden's consistently high ranking in international gender-equality indices and a higher-than-average percentage of women in leadership roles, women remain a minority in the Swedish energy sector. This article traces how women, positioned as a minoritized group within this male-dominated field, develop the motivation to collectively challenge systemic inequality. The aim of the study is to examine how individual experiences of isolation and underrepresentation can give rise to new forms of collective action, leading to organized efforts to promote inclusion and diversity. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 12 women in managerial positions and observations from sectoral events, we analyze how professional identity is reshaped through a process akin to a rite of passage. Using concepts from anthropology, feminist theory, and critical organizational studies, we explore how visibility and marginalization are negotiated and how power is reframed as a collective good rather than an individual resource. The findings highlight the transition from individualized strategies to collective action, and the ways in which the women's efforts materialized in organizational practices, public discourse, and sectoral change. This research contributes to organizational studies on diversity and equality efforts in STEM fields in general, and the energy sector in particular, by highlighting the conditions under which critical consciousness and coalition-building can emerge within masculinized professional contexts. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
keywords
Gender, Energy sector, Sweden, Collective action, Diversity
in
Gender, Work and Organization
pages
12 pages
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
ISSN
1468-0432
DOI
10.1111/gwao.70187
project
Women in power: peer networking and collectivization towards diversity and inclusion in the Swedish energy sector
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
f320e363-3e9a-4464-84c7-f9dbcea2ef07
date added to LUP
2026-05-19 13:00:21
date last changed
2026-05-20 08:53:36
@article{f320e363-3e9a-4464-84c7-f9dbcea2ef07,
  abstract     = {{Despite Sweden's consistently high ranking in international gender-equality indices and a higher-than-average percentage of women in leadership roles, women remain a minority in the Swedish energy sector. This article traces how women, positioned as a minoritized group within this male-dominated field, develop the motivation to collectively challenge systemic inequality. The aim of the study is to examine how individual experiences of isolation and underrepresentation can give rise to new forms of collective action, leading to organized efforts to promote inclusion and diversity. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 12 women in managerial positions and observations from sectoral events, we analyze how professional identity is reshaped through a process akin to a rite of passage. Using concepts from anthropology, feminist theory, and critical organizational studies, we explore how visibility and marginalization are negotiated and how power is reframed as a collective good rather than an individual resource. The findings highlight the transition from individualized strategies to collective action, and the ways in which the women's efforts materialized in organizational practices, public discourse, and sectoral change. This research contributes to organizational studies on diversity and equality efforts in STEM fields in general, and the energy sector in particular, by highlighting the conditions under which critical consciousness and coalition-building can emerge within masculinized professional contexts.}},
  author       = {{Lazoroska, Daniela and Palm, Jenny}},
  issn         = {{1468-0432}},
  keywords     = {{Gender; Energy sector; Sweden; Collective action; Diversity}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{05}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Gender, Work and Organization}},
  title        = {{From Lone Wolf to Collective Action: Increasing Gender Diversity in the Swedish Energy Sector}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gwao.70187}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/gwao.70187}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}