The effects of non-physical peer sexual harassment on high school students’ psychological well-being in Norway: consistent and stable findings across studies

Abstract

Objectives The paper examines how strongly non-physical peer sexual harassment is associated with a wide range of well-being outcomes from symptoms of depression and anxiety to self-esteem and body image. Methods Two large community samples of high school students were analyzed (n = 1384 and n = 1485). Students responded to questionnaires on being subject to nonphysical sexual harassment, sexual coercion and forced intercourse, and to well-being indicators ranging from anxiety, depression, self-esteem, body image. Results Regression analyses suggest that being harassed by peers in a non-physical way was moderately associated with lower levels of well-being over and above the effect of other risk factors. This effect was present for all indicators of well-being. The effect of peer harassment on depressive symptoms was moderated by sex (affected women more) but not by sexual or ethnic minority status. Conclusions The findings imply that although sticks and stones may break bones, it does seem that derogatory words and other forms of non-physical sexual harassment definitely harm high school students.

Online and offline sexual harassment associations of anxiety and depression in an adolescent sample

“…Results from this study confirm results from previous studies that show girls to be more frequently victimized by sexual harassment [3][4][5][6]24]. A nation-wide survey in Sweden shows that this pattern lingers in adulthood, with more women than men reporting sexual harassment [25].…”

“…In a countrywide Finnish study, 55% of girls and 40% of boys reported sexual victimization [4]. Two cross-sectional studies from Norway found prevalence numbers of 80% among girls and 74% among boys in 2007, and 64% and 62%, respectively, in 2013 [5]. An American study found a lower prevalence at 29% and 20% for girls and boys respectively [6].…”

“…Some studies have found that sexual harassment victimization correlates with symptoms of anxiety in adolescent girls and boys [5], whereas other studies have found this correlation in girls but not in boys [7]. Cross-sectional data has linked sexual harassment victimization to other forms of mental illness outcomes among adolescents, such as higher levels of self-harm [6,8], substance use and depressive symptoms [6].…”

Sexual Harassment and Effect on Students’ Self-Esteem in Selected Public and Private Secondary Schools in Kenya

“…Rape, sexual coercion and sexual assault are considered some of the most severe forms of physical sexual harassment (Wane, 2009;Hill & Holly, 2011 psychologically traumatized and terrified besides eliciting lots of silence and denial (Mwiti, 1997;). In Britain, Canada, China, Israel, Norway and Germany SH is on an upward trajectory both in and out of secondary schools (Zeira et al, 2002;Canadian Press, 2008;Wei & Chen, 2011;Bendixen et al, 2018;Witt et al, 2018). In Canada, a survey of 1800 students carried out in 23 high schools showed that over 50% of girls were victims of unwanted sexual comments and gestures which affected their health, adjustment, worth and overall wellbeing in school (Canadian Press, 2008).…”

Study protocol for PRISE: a longitudinal study of sexual harassment during the transition from childhood to adolescence

“…Thirdly, in addition to individual characteristics, a body of literature has identified environmental characteristics that are related to sexual harassment. In addition to e-contexts [28], educational settings have been identified as a major arena for sexual harassment among young people [19, 29]. Some of the existing studies have found that certain aspects of the school context, including teacher maltreatment [22] and feeling disconnected from school [24], are linked to a higher prevalence of sexual harassment.…”