Högskolan i Skövde

In an increasingly globalized world, societies are becoming more diverse, shaped by migration, cross-cultural encounters, and evolving labor market demands. While values such as equality and inclusion are widely promoted, access to opportunity and influence remains uneven. This study explores how individuals with different cultural backgrounds experience and navigate structural and cultural barriers in their pursuit of career advancement within the Swedish labor market. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with professionals from diverse sectors, the study sheds light on the subtle and often informal norms that shape inclusion, advancement opportunities, and perceptions of competence. The analysis is guided by a conceptual framework that integrates the glass ceiling, intersectionality, identity regulation, and resilience. Together, these perspectives reveal how barriers are sustained through both formal systems and subtle expectations tied to cultural conformity and legitimacy. A key theoretical contribution is the introduction of the concept hyperformance, defined as the internalized pressure to continuously exceed expectations in order to gain recognition. This concept adds nuance to existing understandings of overperformance by linking it to conditional inclusion and identity regulation. The study shows that while individuals develop strategies such as code-switching, network-building, and self-reflection to navigate adversity, the burden of inclusion remains individualized. The study highlights the limitations of surface-level diversity initiatives and calls for structural and cultural change. Career advancement is not only a question of individual merit, but of which identities and leadership styles are recognized as legitimate within organizational and societal contexts.