Blurred lines: How to approach sexual harassment training when sexual harassment isn’t always about sex

Abstract

Conversation on Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Through Workplace Training." SIOP regrets the error. "Look at that face. Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president? I mean, she's a woman, and I'm not supposed to say bad things, but really, folks, come on. Are we serious?"-Donald Trump talking about Carly Fiorina during a Rolling Stone interview, September 2015 We completely agree that the issue raised in the focal article by Medeiros and Griffith (2019) is extremely important and timely, and we commend the authors for spearheading this discussion. Although we agree with the spirit of this focal article, we wish to provide an important clarification to the perspective offered by the authors. Medeiros and Griffith focus their discussion on sexual harassment that is limited to sexual behaviors enacted toward victims (e.g., sexual advances or sexual assault). Specifically, they drew heavily on the literature on college campus sexual assault, mentioned that sexual harassment and sexual assault exist on a continuum and are characterized by an "escalating nature," and referenced numerous explicit sexual behaviors in their examples (e.g., sexual advances, sexual assault). Their discussion of training interventions was also focused completely on preventing sexually motivated infractions. Although workplace sexual harassment may involve sexualized comments or behavior, contemporary frameworks conceptualize sexual harassment as being not about sex but about maintaining power and social status on the part of the harasser (Berdahl & Raver, 2011). In the following sections, we discuss this perspective in detail, highlighting three key implications of including a broader "sexual-harassment-as-sexism" definition and discussing how this perspective may change some of the recommendations in the focal article. Sexual harassment may not look like or be motivated by sexual intent Sexual harassment was traditionally defined as involving unwanted sexual behavior committed mostly by men directed mostly toward women. It was thought that such behavior was caused by biological factors-specifically men's purportedly stronger sex drive and desire for sexual expression and gratification (Berdahl & Raver, 2011; Tangri, Burt, & Johnson, 1982). It later became clear, however, that sexual harassment takes more sexist than sexual forms, and scholars and U.S. law now define sexual harassment more broadly as behavior that "derogates, demeans, or

How Do You Define Sexual Harassment?: Why Context Matters

“…Smith” at a conference). Hamilton et al (2019) and Chawla et al (2019) argue that a key to ending sexual harassment is noting that the harassment is not always recognized as being sexual. Rather, sexual harassment is utilized to maintain a power system (Berdahl, 2007; Berdahl & Raver, 2011) and gender-police women (e.g., Leskinen & Cortina, 2014).…”

“…While the NASEM ( 2018) report provides a clearer distinction of the behaviors that constitute sexual harassment, people may not have the same perception of which behaviors fall into those categories (e.g., announcing a medical doctor as, "Mrs. Smith" rather than "Dr. Smith" at a conference). Hamilton et al (2019) and Chawla et al (2019) argue that a key to ending sexual harassment is noting that the harassment is not always recognized as being sexual. Rather, sexual harassment is utilized to maintain a power system (Berdahl, 2007;Berdahl & Raver, 2011) and genderpolice women (e.g., Leskinen & Cortina, 2014).…”

Looking beyond training as a solution to workplace sexual harassment and discrimination

“…However, the need for training intervention should be dictated by the D&I audit findings and focus on cognitive learning rather than attitudinal outcomes (see meta-analysis by Bezrukova et al, 2016). For training interventions to be effective, they should be implemented as part of a more holistic intervention (Hamilton et al, 2019;Magley et al, 2013). Potential for bias in people, processes, and systems (Bohnet, 2016;Castilla, 2015;Heilman & Caleo, 2018;Vinkenburg, 2017) • Recruitment and selection, performance and talent management documents, systems, and policies • Advertisements • Organization's website • Interviews with hiring managers, talent acquisition team, HR, and recently hired employees…”

Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Validity of the Sexual Harassment Scale in Football Refereeing

“…The MeToo Movement has contributed to raising awareness about the sexual harassment to which women are subjected. This harassment can occur in different environments, such as work, transportation, or public spaces, at home, at educational environments, or sports, among others [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ].…”