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Appendix C: Qualitative Study of Sexual Harassment in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Pages 231-274

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From page 231...
... Appendix C Qualitative Study of Sexual Harassment in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Prepared for National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Committee on the Impacts of Sexual Harassment in Academia 500 Fifth St. NW Washington, DC 20001 Prepared by Monique Clinton-Sherrod Tasseli McKay Christine Lindquist Erin Kennedy RTI International 3040 E
From page 232...
... 3. How do women who are targeted for sexual harassment understand their experiences to have shaped their career trajectories (including long-term ramifications for work habits, research focus or professional specialty, collaborative or mentoring relationships, job opportunities, job advance ment and tenure, research funding, and publications)
From page 233...
... Prospective interviewees who provided informed consent via telephone proceeded to participate in an audio-recorded, semi-structured interview lasting approximately 1 hour that covered the following topics: • Understanding of sexual harassment (e.g., experiences considered to con stitute sexual harassment)
From page 234...
... A codebook was developed jointly by the analysis team, incorporating deductive codes based on the study research questions, and inductive codes to capture themes that emerged during the coding and data review process. Queries of coded data were run in ATLAS.ti to capture segments of text that focused on each research question.
From page 235...
... These responses varied, and included sexual advances, lewd jokes or comments, disparaging or critical comments related to competency, unwanted sexual touching, stalking, and sexual assault by a colleague. One respondent observed that most persons understood sexual harassment primarily in terms of unwanted sexual advances,
From page 236...
... Gender discrimination was often normalized in the male-dominated settings in which they worked, which interviewees felt had fueled sexually harassing behavior, fostered tolerance of it, and made differentiating it as such difficult. 3.2  Additional Contextual Influences on Sexual Harassment Respondents noted several issues that tied into the general climate of accepting sexual harassment.
From page 237...
... Many respondents described the dialogue among women faculty to warn about or disclose sexually harassing behaviors as an unfortunate shared bond that was far too often the norm. It's more calling them to discuss the tribal experience and just hear the yeah, I've dealt with it too, and it sucks and no, I don't have any ideas for how to fix it, but this isn't only happening to you, which is kind of the bonding moment.
From page 238...
... (Nontenure-track faculty member in medicine) Findings for Research Question 2: How do women who are targeted for sexual harassment respond to those experiences in the short term?
From page 239...
... External coping strategies (e.g., peer support, therapy) are discussed later in this section, and increased involvement in gender equity efforts is discussed in the findings for Research Question 3.
From page 240...
... Stark power differentials between the target and perpetrator of the sexual harassment exacerbated the sense of limited options and the general fear of disclosure. Although the targets of sexual harassment ranged in status within the academic hierarchy, those respondents who felt the least empowered in disclosing or addressing the sexually harassing behavior were often newer faculty, residents, and postdocs, whereas their perpetrators were often higher-ranking faculty, professional mentors, or widely recognized experts.
From page 241...
... in writing. Other women noted that they had considered confronting their perpetrators, but decided against it.
From page 242...
... One woman noted how her reporting experiences (similar to those shared by other respondents) felt revictimizing and had a chilling effect on future reporting intentions: I hated it .
From page 243...
... (Nontenure-track faculty member in medicine) These accounts of actual retaliation experiences on the part of study respondents and their colleagues bore out women's widespread concern and apprehension regarding the possibility of retaliation as a consequence of reporting (see the findings for Research Question 4)
From page 244...
... Yet no one who's been here has a hard time believing it at all." Others explained how connections with women colleagues in their department not only supported their coping with harassment, but also bolstered the overall quality of their work lives. I happen to be in a department that is well above the national average for women faculty in [predominantly male field]
From page 245...
... 3.9 Collaborative or Mentoring Relationships The most consistent effect of gender-based and sexual harassment experiences on respondents' subsequent professional relationships was greater caution. A number of women indicated that their experiences had made them far less trusting and more careful in decisions about collaborations.
From page 246...
... , particularly those that involved alcohol. Several were extremely reluctant to attend social events at professional conferences (where numerous respondents had experienced sexual harassment)
From page 247...
... Several respondents who mentored other women felt a responsibility to raise their awareness of genderbased harassment and how to deal with it. 3.10 Research Focus or Professional Specialty It was fairly uncommon for women to make changes to their research focus or professional specialty as a result of gender-based and sexual harassment.
From page 248...
... 3.11  Job Opportunities, Advancement, and Tenure When asked about the manner in which respondents felt their experiences with gender-based and sexual harassment had affected their career progressions, the predominant theme that emerged was one of negative trajectories. Several respondents identified specific major negative career transitions they made (or were forced to make)
From page 249...
... One woman felt that she was forced out of her field because of retaliation for reporting sexual harassment, and another left her field to avoid interacting with the perpetrator. Several respondents also gave up good prospective job opportunities or settled for less prestigious positions because of their experiences.
From page 250...
... . Along with the manner in which sexual harassment experiences harmed women's subsequent professional accomplishments, some respondents also identified ways in which gender discrimination directly limited their accomplishments.
From page 251...
... (Assistant professor of engineering) Last, some women noted that gender discrimination in their fields made them work harder, which increased their productivity.
From page 252...
... …I just felt if I could focus on the teaching and not the research aspect of it -- that's what drew me to a smaller institution. It was almost like I could do what I knew and Findings for Research Question 4: What barriers or challenges do respondents believe prevent sexual harassment in sciences, engineering, and medicine from being addressed?
From page 253...
... Although the sexual comments stopped, he continued to make derogatory comments about women in her presence and their working rela tionship has become extremely tense and stressful. She would like to leave her institution for a better environment -- and feels that this is inevitable -- but feels somewhat trapped due to limited job opportunities in the geographic area and her need for the benefits offered by her job.
From page 254...
... explained, "I don't know exactly what the formal process is, but I could have very easily found out; I just chose not to." As this respondent and many others went on to explain, the expectation of retaliation or punishment was a formidable deterrent to any form of reporting, whether at the university level or to supervisors, chairs, or deans. With striking consistency across fields and career stages, respondents said they expected that they would be punished in some way if they reported their harassment experiences in any way.
From page 255...
... The sense of vulnerability to retaliation prompted many targets of sexual harassment to make a careful assessment regarding the identifiability of sexual harassment complaints. I looked to see if there was some type of ombudsman on campus or some type of confidential safe space to discuss this, and at my new university, it was difficult to find anything readily online.
From page 256...
... Although these perceptions were common across forms of reporting, respondents had especially low expectations for the outcomes of formal, university-level reporting. Respondents set their expectations of university-level reporting on their past reporting experiences, observation of colleagues' reporting experiences, or knowledge that a known harassment perpetrator already had been reported.
From page 257...
... (Assistant professor of medicine) Last, some women noted that there was no formal reporting channel at all for certain roles or situations, such as when the victim or perpetrator was a postdoctoral student, or when the victim and perpetrator were at different institutions.
From page 258...
... Lack of Awareness. Among the strongest themes in these data was women's observation that their male colleagues were unaware of the pervasiveness and severity of sexual harassment experiences in their workplaces.
From page 259...
... As one respondent (a nontenure-track faculty member in engineering) summarized: "Rarely, in my case, have I had much success changing these people's minds, or changing the way they look at the world, or anything." Others saw the entrenchment of an individual's harassing behavior as a generational issue.
From page 260...
... Poor Enforcement of Existing Policies. Many interviewees also felt that the underapplication of anti-harassment policies at the department or university levels built a culture of permissiveness in which harassing behavior flourished.
From page 261...
... Respondents, regardless of tenure in academic settings, noted the critical need for those in leadership positions, such as more senior faculty, department chairs, and deans, to actively work to change norms and behaviors that are conducive to sexual harassment within the academic setting. Given the hierarchical nature of these settings, those at the top set the climate for what is deemed acceptable and unacceptable behavior and a norm of responsibility across all faculty and staff to address unacceptable behavior.
From page 262...
... (Professor in geosciences) Some respondents indicated that existing policies and procedures did not always have the flexibility that facilitated reporting, for both the target and perpetrator of sexual harassment.
From page 263...
... Respondents stressed the importance of improved trainings that reflect this range of behaviors, some of which may have become normalized within academic settings, and the ways in which these influence the overall climate in the department and university. Respondents also stressed the need for all roles in the academic setting to have access to the trainings.
From page 264...
... 3.17  Promising Prevention Approaches: Professional Societies and National Organizations Ramifications for Sexual Harassment Infractions. Respondents viewed professional societies and national organizations as important untapped resources for sexual harassment prevention efforts.
From page 265...
... Respondents widely noted the most important sexual harassment prevention strategy would be a broad shift in both the norms and the general climate of academic settings, both of which perpetuate gender discrimination and fuel the perpetration and acceptance of sexual harassment. Global cultural change.
From page 266...
... Limitations of the Research Sexual harassment has been a longstanding issue inside and outside of academia, with recent high-profile cases placing a renewed spotlight on the pervasive nature of these issues. This study provides a snapshot into the sexual harassment experiences of women in sciences, engineering, and medicine, particularly in the higher education and medical settings, and the effects on their career trajectory.
From page 267...
... This is an important direction for future work on the effects of sexual harassment on career trajectories. 4. SUMMARY 4.1  Study Purpose and Methods The Committee on the Impacts of Sexual Harassment in Academia of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine commissioned this study to understand the influence of sexual harassment on the career advancement of women faculty in sciences, engineering, and medicine.
From page 268...
... Women's work habits often changed in the wake of sexual harassment experiences. Some respondents immediately considered quitting their employment or training, and several could not get any work done in the aftermath of the incident.
From page 269...
... Several respondents made negative career transitions that they attributed to their sexual harassment experiences, such as stepping down from an assistant dean position, taking a position at a lower-ranked university, being fired as a retaliatory action, or dropping out of a major research project. Others stayed in their positions, but suffered from lack of advancement, such as not receiving tenure or not becoming
From page 270...
... Respondents offered many ideas and strategies for improving sexual harassment prevention and response. They urged greater attention to the ways that senior faculty and department leadership shape university climates regarding sexual harassment, and called for work to change departmental and university norms.
From page 271...
... 4.3  Implications for Larger Areas of NASEM Inquiry Despite the limitations of this study, its findings have several implications for understanding the nature of sexual harassment, its impact on SEM faculty career trajectories, and the preventive and intervening efforts that might be taken to address it. 4.3.1  Implications Regarding the Nature of Sexual Harassment The range of sexual harassment experiences with this limited sample and the small percentage of those who reported their incident speak to the ongoing need for research efforts that assess the prevalence, nature, and consequences of incidents.
From page 272...
... , at least in my experience, are mostly male and mostly laugh off this sort of topic and don't take it seriously, so perhaps journal publications or these studies that could be put in front of senior leadership might help to have them take the topic seriously." Respondents described how sexual harassment experiences are often compounded and fueled by a broader context of gender discrimination, particularly among male-dominated leadership structures. Their experiences support ongoing needs for strategies and policies addressing campus climate and diversity of leadership.
From page 273...
... Several respondents, however, were unaware of any existing policies or steps that could have been taken to address their sexual harassment experiences, especially among postdoc and newer faculty. University and departmental leadership should prioritize ensuring that all staff understand existing policies and available resources.
From page 274...
... These organizations may serve as conduits for information dissemination and establish firm stances and policies regarding sexual harassment -- which could in turn facilitate shifts in norms around the acceptance of this behavior. As respondents to this study impressed on their interviewers over and over again, better sexual harassment prevention and responses are urgently needed in science, engineering, and medical fields.


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