THE PSYCHOSOCIAL IMPACT OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT ON WOMEN IN THE US MILITARY

The purpose of this research is to study the prevalence, dimensions, a nd correlates of psychological harm that women experience as the resul t of sexual harassment in the workplace. I employed data collected fro m a worldwide survey of sexual harassment in the active-duty U.S. mili tary. The scientifically selected sample included over 10,000 working military women. Four general types of negative psychosocial reactions were identified among victims of sexual harassment: productivity probl ems, attitudes toward the organization, emotional reactions, and relat ions with family. Analyses explored the relations of these psychosocia l reactions to (a) characteristics of the harassing behavior (what hap pened and who did it), (b) characteristics of the victim, (c) characte ristics of the organizational climate in which the harassment took pla ce, and (d) the victim's coping responses.