GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE INTERPRETATION OF SOCIAL-SEXUAL BEHAVIOR - A CROSS-CULTURAL-PERSPECTIVE ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Numerous studies have found gender differences in judgments about sexu al harassment. However, most previous research has been conducted on U .S. samples only. The present research examines gender differences in judgments about sexual harassment from a cross-cultural perspective. C ollege students from Australia, Brazil, Germany, and the United States were asked to judge the degree to which a specific interaction betwee n a student and a professor described in varying hypothetical scenario s might be considered sexual harassing and to provide a brief definiti on of sexual harassment In some conditions, U.S. women judged specific interactions as more harassing than U.S. men. However, this pattern d id not emerge in student samples from other countries. No within-cultu re gender differences in students' definitions of sexual harassment we re obtained, although the results revealed considerable cross-cultural differences. The relevance of these findings for understanding the '' reasonable woman'' standard in legal proceedings is discussed.