The security dilemma is a well-known model for describing how states act in certain situations due to the lack of trust in the intentions of other states. Instead of trusting that other states will cooperate, and that their increased military spending are for defense purposes, one might conclude that the wisest course of action would be to increase one’s own defenses as well, thus creating a vicious cycle of an arms race. Whether or not one state trusts another seems to be the fundamental aspect of the dilemma. Can a similar pattern be found in the behavior of individuals when it comes to trust? Are their opinions on the need for a stronger defense related to the extent to which they trust others? This is what this thesis strives to answer by examining the correlation between the trust and people’s opinion on defense spending. The thesis is based on previous studies and theories within the field of trust research and attempts to fill the gaps in an otherwise well researched field through analysis of data collected by the research program EVS. The findings of the study indicate a correlation between the general trust of Swedes and their opinion on the importance of maintaining a strong defense.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka Sveriges inställning till det permanenta strukturerade samarbetet (PESCO) utifrån teorierna om småstaters säkerhetsdilemman med betoning på dikotomin mellan autonomi och inflytande. Undersökningen genomfördes med en textanalys av framförallt propositioner, motioner, partiprogram, debattartiklar, samt med samtalsintervjuer av Socialdemokraternas, Moderaternas, Vänsterpartiets och Liberalernas försvarspolitiska företrädare. Resultatet indikerar en dominans av parti-strategiska argument för samarbetet och kulturbaserade argument emot det. Slutsatsen är att Sveriges inställning till PESCO är i stort sett positiv, men att den präglas av en ambivalens som beror på pragmatiska argument kontra kulturbaserade argument.