College women report frequent instances of being touched or talked to by men in an uncomfortable, sexually overpowering way, yet they don't view this as peer sexual harassment
They don't like the treatment, but explain
that they've "become used to it." Would it be accurate to label this
treatment peer sexual harassment?
A. No; by definition, peer sexual harassment involves the development of
a hostile environment, which women in the example don't report.
B. No; if a target is unwilling to label certain behavior sexual harassment,
then the behavior can't be considered sexual harassment by anyone.
C. Yes, but only if the people involved were truly peers; if any kind of
overt status relationship existed, the behavior could not be considered
harassment.
D. Yes; research shows that women have become numb to harassing
behaviors by male peers; they're often reluctant to label it peer sexual
harassment.
D
Communication & Mass Media