As college students develop in their academic experiences, their social encounters continue to expand, however there is a line between acceptable and unacceptable behavior that can potentially hinder someone’s success.
Sexual harassment is unwelcome and unwanted sexual advances, requests, and other physical and verbal conducts of behavior. This includes assault, direct or indirect comments, pressure, constant contacting through social media, stalking and much more. These are non-consensual actions conducted by one party against another.
Sexual harassment is unacceptably common and is becoming normalized with how frequently it occurs. To stress the frequency of it, eight out of 10 students will experience sexual harassment at some point in their academic pursuits and 25 percent will experience it on a daily basis.
At a university level, more than 60 percent of students report being harassed. That’s 18 out of a class of 30, and that’s just the number of whom have verbally reported the issue. Of college students, 90 percent suffer from harassment imposed by another student. The most common reason that people sexually harass others is because they think it’s funny, but what’s so funny about it?
There’s nothing funny about making someone feel uncomfortable. There’s nothing funny about pressuring someone to do something they didn’t want to do. There’s nothing funny about infringing on someone else’s boundaries. Some effects of sexual harassment in both men and women include anxiety, depression and even PTSD.
These symptoms can be both short and long lasting. Reasons why victims downplay the gravity of the situation include shame, denial and fear of consequence.
Doctor in clinical psychology Gershen Kaufman says that shame is a natural reaction because the victim tends to blame themselves. They tend to blame themselves for being too friendly or for sending the wrong message when in fact it isn’t in their control when the receiver takes the message the wrong way.
Those who experience sexual harassment also sometimes minimize the severity of the issue because it doesn’t seem as extreme as what others have encountered. They tend to feel like what they went through was nothing compared to what someone else has experienced.
Lastly, people don’t feel the need to come forward with what occurred because they fear the many different repercussions, such as fear of losing opportunities and credibility and being seen as an attention seeker.
If you have experienced sexual harassment, know that your feelings are valid. It is understandable why some choose not to report these instances, but just because many don’t go reported does not mean it is a minor subject. Let this serve as a reminder that sexual harassment is never okay.
If you or someone you know is coping with the effects of sexual harassment, The National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free services at 1-800-656-4673.
