Which word from paragraph 3 the reader understand the meaning of the word intermediary?

Intermediary means: A person who acts as a link between people in order to try to bring about an agreement or reconciliation.

Explanation:

I don't know the paragraph you're talking about but there's the definition of the word.

This study discovered that women who are in positions of power in the military were generally not respected. The reason for this was the belief that these women obtained their power through illegitimate means. An example of this could be that there was some sort of quota system in play.