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Sexual Harassment: What does it look like?
Sexual harassment is blatant sexual or sexually suggestive behavior in the form of unsolicited physical acts, advances, or verbal remarks.
It appears in a multitude of forms, including:
Offers or requests of unwanted sexual favors and acts
Verbal messages
Forwarding unwanted erotic photos/videos/messages of oneself through the use of technology
Exposing oneself and/or performing sexual act on oneself
Unwanted physical contact
Sharing unwanted erotic material in professional settings (descriptions, pictures, videos, etc.)
Following/stalking
Sexual gestures
Expressing verbal sexual gratification (whistling, grunts, animal noises, etc.)
Comments concerning an individual's body
Victims of Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment can occur everywhere and anywhere to anyone and at any given time. Unlike those who choose to sexually assault someone, those who choose to sexually harass others tend to have no specific target when deciding to do so. Being that it is physically easier and quicker to execute contributes to its extreme commonness. A survey done by survey firm GFK, a national study on Sexual Harassment and Assault, determined the immense presence of sexual harassment on a national scale:
In their lifetime, (81%) of women and (43%) of men will experience some form of sexual harassment.
The most common form of sexual harassment in both women (77%) and men (34%), is verbal sexual harassment.
Other forms of sexual harassment experienced by women include unwelcome sexual physical contact (51%), cyber-sexual harassment (41%), being followed (34%), and unwanted genital exposure (30%).
Other forms of sexual harassment experienced by men are cyber-sexual harassment (22%), unwelcome sexual physical contact (17%), being followed (12%), and unwanted genital exposure (12%).
Sexual harassment is as notable, far more common against women, while men are significantly more common to be the perpetrators. According to a 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence survey, men account for 90% of sexual perpetrators in sexual violence against women. And in situations where the victim is male, 93% reported the perpetrator to also be a man.
Its Influences and Causes
Sexual harassment has been so heavily implemented in a plethora of cultures, societies, and in individuals for hundreds of generations. A multitude of factors contribute, influence, and cause sexual harassment and its standardization 一 there is no paper long enough to name them all. To name a few most consequential and common, the portrayal of women and sexual harassment in entertainment material, power dynamics particularly in professional settings, and an absence of an understanding of sexual harassment.
Entertainment
All forms of media inevitably have an impact on the ways of thinking, ultimately resulting in the actions of individuals. But regarding the portrayal of particularly women and sexual harassment in media, it is detrimental to both victims and potential victims. In numerous video games with a younger male audience, movies aimed at pleasing the male gaze, and the depiction of women's bodies in comics, all and more objectify and sexualize women. Entertainment material tends to portray women as sex objects both internally and externally. It gives viewers the notion that possibly, it is okay for life to imitate art.
Another point regarding entertainment material is the portrayal of sexual harassment being passed off as both compliments for women and jokes for men. When women get whistled or chirped at, it is expected to be perceived as a compliment of her beauty. Especially when the perpetrator is considered attractive, despite his perverse actions, the consequences are cast to the side due to his physical appearance. There are a multitude of ways to tell women they are beautiful that are not dehumanizing. It is humorous to see and speak about a man getting assaulted and harassed in entertainment, likely due to the rareness of the situation and the world view that men are the dominant sex. Extremely more so when the perpetrator is a woman, the man is told he should enjoy the harassment and assault he receives from a woman. Despite the rareness of male victims, it is still prevalent, and it still happens. Sexual harassment is a serious topic and should never be justified in a positive light 一 there is nothing positive about sexual harassment.
Power Dynamics
In hierarchical settings, such as a school or a work setting, there are individuals who hold great positions of authority over others in the establishment. Teachers over students, employers and bosses over employees, a manager over an actor or a singer, a family friend over a niece or a nephew of a friend, and most commonly seen among teenagers, seniors over freshmen. Positions of authority allow for the opportunity of abusing said power in order to gain personal gratification.
Those in positions of power and authority are able to utilize what they possess to manipulate those they wish to gain something from 一 in this case, sexual gratification. It is an unwritten taboo to go against someone who is more powerful than you, as not only is it considered disrespect, but it will likely result in some form of punishment far greater than a regular punishment due to their amount of power. The harassment is likely to continue when the victim has no one to go to for aid for fear of punishment and repercussions.
Absence of an Understanding
Sex education has recently become a part of school curriculum in many schools, as sex was once a very forbidden topic unless spoken negatively upon. And while sex education is more commonly taught in schools, the concept of sexual harassment is hardly mentioned with the curriculum. Without this idea of what sexual harassment is, students are unaware of what it looks like. Consequently, they will be unable to determine if it has occurred or is occurring to them or someone they know, thus meaning they are not going to be able to put an end to it. In another perspective, cultures differ across the world, and so do their customs. In cultures of European and the Middle East, greeting with either a kiss on the lips or cheek is a cultural norm. Whereas in America, a simple handshake will suffice. Experiencing different cultures follows experiencing different cultures which lead to confusion among individuals. The inability to understand and detect sexual harassment poses no possibility for prevention.
Its Detrimental Effects
The effects of experiencing sexual harassment differs from person to person. Despite that, experiencing sexual harassment influences responses and changes in the one who experiences it. The list of responses is not limited to the following:
Physical responses
Sleep disturbances (nightmares, night terrors)
Lethargy
Sexual dysfunction
Issues with the digestive system
Shifts in weight
Isolation
Mental responses
Depression, anxiety, denial
Irritability, fear, distress
Feelings of weakness, inability to understand
Low self-esteem, insecurity, guilt, and shame
Social responses
Change in routes, paths, streets, etc. once taken to get to a certain place in order to avoid the perpetrator
Decrease in performance
Overall avoidance of the place in which the harassment occurred (e.g. ditching school, not showing up to work), could possibly lead to withdrawal
Becoming exceedingly aware of surroundings
Loss of interest in social events
Change in jobs, schools, classes, majors, etc.
Sources
Plank, Liz. “Most Perpetrators of Sexual Violence Are Men, so Why Do We Call It a Women’s Issue?” Divided States of Women, 2 Nov. 2017, www.dividedstatesofwomen.com/2017/11/2/16597768/sexual-assault-men-himthough. Accessed 4 June 2021.
“Sexual Harassment.” Sexual Harassment, www.usf.edu/student-affairs/victim-advocacy/types-of-crimes/sexualharassment.pdf. Accessed 6 Jan. 2021.
“Sexual Harassment | RAINN.” RAINN, www.rainn.org/articles/sexual-harassment. Accessed 4 June 2021.
“Sexual Harassment Statistics | Spivak Law.” Spivak Law Firm, www.fightsexualharassment.com/sexual-harassment-statistics.php. Accessed 24 May 2021.
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