What are Swedish female expatriates' perceptions and experiences of cultural masculinity?

Abstract

This thesis is a study of Swedish female expatriates and their experience of masculine culture. Starting from Hofstede's work, the study identifies what environment women will face when they go abroad on international assignments. From an organisational and cultural perspective, it explores female expatriatism by building a solid theoretical framework and research context as a foundation on which analysis and conclusions are built. Through this, companies can also prevent the wasting of valuable resources in the form of inefficient human resource management. This thesis is a qualitative study which includes five women who all have Sweden as the country of origin. The countries where the women are or have been assigned to are Australia, China, USA and Singapore. By interviewing these women, we have created an image of what it looks like for female expatriates in terms of masculine culture. The study demonstrates how women experience masculine culture and what companies should have in mind in regards to efficiency, and that many companies today have a long way to make best use of their employees' skills.