Sexual Harassment: An Experimental Test of Sex-Role Spillover Theory

Abstract

This experimental study examined the ways in which knowledge of a woman's occupation type influenced how different types of sexual harassment were perceived. A total of 53 male and 58 female undergraduates were asked to evaluate six scenarios describing three types of harassment (unwanted sexual attention, gender harassment, and sexual coercion) at two levels of severity (nonphysical and physical) toward women in two different types of occupations (traditional and nontraditional). The results indicated that participants were less likely to perceive incidents of sexual coercion as harassing when a woman is in a nontraditional occupation. The results also provided evidence of a perceptual gap between men and women for incidents of unwanted sexual attention and gender harassment but not for incidents of sexual coercion. Results provide support for the sex-role spillover model of sexual harassment proposed by Gutek. Theoretical and legal implications of this research are discussed.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Baker, D. D. , Terpstra, E. E. , & Larntz, K. (1990). The influence of individual characteristics and severity of harassing behavior on reactions to sexual harassment. Sex Roles, 22, 305-326.

Carothers, C. C. , & Crull, P. (1984). Contrasting sexual harassment in female- and male-dominated occupations. In K. B. Sacks & D. Remy (Eds.), My troubles are going to have trouble with me (pp. 219-228). New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

Ellison v. Brady, 924 F.2d 872 (9th Cir. 1991).

Fair Employee Practices Guideline (1978-1982). Waterford, CT: Bureau of Business Practice.

Fitzgerald, L. F. (1993). Sexual harassment: Violence against women in the workplace. American Psychologist4 48, 1070-1076.

Fitzgerald, L. F. , & Hesson-McInnis, M. (1989). The dimensions of sexual harassment A structural analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 35, 309-326.

Fitzgerald, L. F. , Hulin, C. L. , & Drasgow, F. (in press). Stress in the workplace. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Fitzgerald, L. F. , Shullman, S. L. , Bailey, N. , Richards, M. , Sweckerj. , Gold, Y. , Ormerod, M. , & Weitzman, L. (1988). The incidence and dimensions of sexual harassment in academia and the workplace. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 32, 152-175.

Fitzgerald, L. F. , Swan, S. , & Fischer, K. (1995). Why didn't she just report him?: The psychological and legal implications of women's responses to sexual harassment. Journal of Social Issues, 51, 117-138.

10.

Frazier, P. A. , Cochran, C. C. , & Olson, A. M. (1995). Social science research on lay definitions of sexual harassment. Journal of Social Issues, 51, 21-38.

11.

Gruber, J. E. (1992). A typology of personal and environmental sexual harassment Research and policy implications for the 1990s. Sex Roles, 26, 447-464.

12.

Gutek, B. A. (1985). Sex and the workplace San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

13.

Gutek, B. A. , Morasch, B. , & Cohen, A. G. (1983). Interpreting social-sexual behavior in a work setting. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 22, 30-48.

14.

Gutek, B. A. , & O'Connor, M. O. (1995). The empirical basis for the reasonable woman standard. Journnal of Social Issues, 51, 151-166.

15.

Jones, T. S. , & Remland, M. S. (1992). Sources of variability in perceptions of and responses to sexual harassment. Sex Roles 27, 121-142.

16.

Powell, G. N. (1986). Effects of sex role identity and sex on definitions of sexual harassment. Sex Roles, 14, 9-19.

17.

Pryor, J. D. (1985). The lay person's understanding of sexual harassment. Sex Roles, 13, 273-278.

18.

Sheffey, S. , & Tindale, R. S. (1992). Perceptions of sexual harassment in the workplace. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 1502-1520.

19.

Swan, S. , & Schneider, K. T. (1994, May). A new look at type and severity of sexual harassment. Paper presented at the meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.

20.

Walker, L. , & Monahan, J. (in press). Daubert and the Reference Manual. An essay on the future of science in law. Virginia Law Review.

21.

Yoder, J. D. (1994). Looking beyond numbers: The effects of gender status, job prestige, and occupational gender-typing on tokenism processes. Social Psychology Quarterly, 57, 150-159.