Different Types of Sexual Harassment in Society and its Relationship with Level of Sexual Norm Acceptance and Presence in Public Places (Case study: Female College Students in Islamic Azad University, Shiraz Branch)

Abstract

Women victimization and harassment by men are the consequences of inequality between men and women in which they create a considerable number of problems for society. One type of harassment that women face in different forms in various societies is “street harassment” or “sexual harassment in society” including verbal and nonverbal behaviors such as whistling, blinking, ogling, pinching, touching the body, booing, and street remarks (wisecrack). Street remarks usually have sexual nature and they are some comments about physical appearance of women or their presence in public places. This paper was intended to study the women experience of different types of sexual harassment in public places and its relationship with acceptance level of sexual norms in public places using survey method on 369-individual sample among female college students in Islamic Azad University of Shiraz selected through  stratified sampling. The results of step-by-step regression indicate that two variables including presence in public places and acceptance level of sexual norms were found to have the highest effect on experience of sexual harassment.