ABSTRACT
Sexual harassment (SH) has become one of the most controversial issues of our time. It is a sex crime, which can be dened as “the making of sexually offensive remarks or acts, or unwanted, unwelcome, and offensive sexual advances, often intimidating in nature, especially by one in a superior or supervisory position.” The American Psychological Association (APA) denes sexual harassment as “deliberate or repeated comments, gestures, or physical contacts of a sexual nature that are unwanted by the recipient.”1 Acquiescence to such behavior is often a condition of continued employment, promotion, or satisfactory evaluation. It also carries threats of employment reprisals if such advances are refused. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) 1980 regulations:
In general, the following types of conduct are considered to be illegal sexual harassment:
(1) repeated sexual innuendo, obscene or off-color jokes, slurs, lewd remarks and language, and other offensive sexual comments;
(2) content in letters and notes, facsimiles, e-mail, grafti that is of a sexual nature or sexually abusive;
(3) sexual propositions, insults, and threats; (4) sexually-oriented demeaning names; (5) persistent unwanted sexual or romantic overtures or attention; (6) leering, whistling, or other sexually suggestive sounds or gestures; (7) displaying pornographic pictures, calendars, cartoons, or other sexual material in the
workplace; (8) coerced or unwelcome touching, patting, brushing up against, pinching, kissing, stroking,
massaging, squeezing, fondling, or tickling; (9) subtle or overt pressure for sexual favors; (10) coerced sexual intercourse (e.g., as a condition of employment or academic status).
