Perceptions of Officer Training Among Newly Employed Officers and Specialist Officers in the Swedish Armed Forces – A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Professional officer training in Sweden has gone through some major changes in the last 30 years. The current officer system is a two-category system, where officers complete the three-year academic Officers' Programme, and specialist officers complete 18 months of vocational training at the Swedish Armed Forces' training schools. The aim of this study was to investigate newly graduated officers' and specialist officers' perceptions of their officer training. Results showed that their perceptions could be covered by three overriding themes: identification, vertical versus horizontal career paths and the perceived relevance of the officer training. Furthermore, the respondents' officer identification seemed to have developed before officer training, and the individual motivators concerned deliberate choices of becoming either an officer or a specialist officer. Coaching was crucial to both officers and specialist officers. However, the officers stated that coaching came at an early stage of their basic military training, whereas specialist officers were coached at a later stage in their career. The implications for the Swedish Armed Forces is that identification and career path are issues that need to be addressed early in a soldier's military career, and that officer training needs to be more focussed on defining career paths, especially for specialist officers.

’Man växer fort i Försvaret, så länge man klarar av det’: Befälsuttagna värnpliktigas erfarenheter av utbildning med fullständigt försteg respektive tankar om fortsatt engagemang i Försvarsmakten

“…Studier kring upplevelser av militär utbildning och tankar om vidare engagemang har även gjorts på grupperna officerare och specialistofficerare (Österberg, Oskarsson & Nilsson, 2021) samt reservofficerare (Österberg, Nilsson, Oskarsson, m.fl., 2022). Även motivationsfaktorer har undersökts tidigare bland officerare (Gustavsson m.fl., 2009).…”

Military Competence-in-Use in the Expeditionary Era: A Swedish Example From Missions Abroad

“…Although such studies may make important suggestions for military personnel training and have interesting implications for real-life situations, they arguably have limitations when it comes to conduct and decision-making in the complexity of real combat situations (Victor Tillberg & Tillberg, 2013). In addition, many studies designed to suggest training improvements for officers and service members rely on observations from exercises and scenarios made during peacetime simulation games (e.g., Hedlund, 2017;Österberg et al, 2021). Thus, this general description of competence shows that "on paper" we do not lack descriptions of the concept's meaning.…”

Views on an officer career – the relationship between personality, leadership expectations and perceived qualities

“…The necessity for the Swedish Armed Forces (SAF) to recruit enough officers was a challenging issue during the years with an all-volunteer force (AVF), 2011-2017. A number of strategic decisions have had a great impact on the SAF; foremost is the big downsizing of the SAF, which has been going on since the late 1990s ( Nilsson & Österberg, 2021 ; Österberg et al, 2021 ). In the mid 1990s, the SAF changed orientation from an invasion-based to an operational defense with a multinational focus ( Hedlund & Österberg, 2013 ).…”

“…The situation on the Swedish labor market has been of advantage for job seekers in the last decade, hence making it harder for the SAF to find new recruits, as there have been many jobs available. Österberg et al (2021) noted that voluntary recruitment in Sweden has been a challenge since 2010, and the SAF need for soldiers was not met in any single year with a voluntary personnel supply system. The difficulties in recruiting soldiers also had a negative impact on the recruitment to the 3-year officer program (OP).…”