More than 60% of girls and 40% of boys aged 13-17, report that they have been "touched, grabbed, or pinched in a sexual way." (What is Sexual Harassment? 73) Peer-to-peer sexual harassment is rampant in elementary and secondary schools. Examples include students' attempts to pull down gym shorts or flip up skirts, nasty, personalized graffiti on bathroom walls; sexualized jokes that mock women's bodies; bras snapped and body parts groped; and outright physical assault and attempted rape. (21).
Researchers Gene Abel, Judith Becker, and Jerry Cunningham-Rathner, in an article in The International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, identified several common types of distorted thinking in sexual harassers. The first distortion is "If you dont resist the sexual advances, you really want to have sex with the perpetrator." another is "Having sex with children (including adolescents) is a good way to teach them about sex." and lastly there is "The adult who only feels a victims body and genitals isnt really being sexual, so no harm is done." (Hodgson 46-47) Harassers are known to target teens with specific qualities. Teens who are identified as quiet and shy, teens who want everyone to like them, teens who seem to let things slide, so-called "easy" or promiscuous teens, as well as loners. (52).
To determine whether incidents will be defined as sexual harassment or not, gender has clearly proven to be the most influential factor of all. (What is Sexual Harassment? 41) One campus official stated, "If you make someone feel sexually uncomfortable, youre guilty of sexual harassment." (Clark 6-10) An important definitional criterion is that the initiator is in a position of power over the person he or she harasses. (6-10).
There are five types of sexual harassment: .
♦Type 1: Gender Harassment.
generalized sexist remarks and behavior.
♦Type 2: Seductive Behavior.
inappropriate and offensive but essentially sanction-free behavior, with no penalty attached to noncompliance.