SUFFERING IN SILENCE - PROCEDURAL JUSTICE VERSUS GENDER SOCIALIZATIONISSUES IN UNIVERSITY SEXUAL HARASSMENT GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES

Although some studies suggest that sexual harassment is a prevalent pr oblem in academia, it is accompanied by consistently low reporting rat es, An examination of the relative explanatory power of procedural jus tice (Lind & Tyler, 1988) and gender socialization (Riger, 1991) to ac count for this situation was conducted. Demographic, situational, and attitudinal variables representing various obstacles to filing formal grievances were assessed in two groups: reporters and nonreporters of sexual harassment. Results indicate that procedural justice (e.g., ske pticism regarding the response efficacy of filing a complaint) was mor e related to nonreported sexual harassment than was gender socializati on (e.g., a caring vs. a justice perspective). Results are discussed i n terms of their implications for a broader theoretical framework and for the ways in which formal agencies that are mandated to protect uni versity members from sexual harassment could refine their grievance pr ocedures.