Factors that Motivate Society to get involved in Sexual Harassment

Introduction
When do you consider an incident as sexual harassment? Is it when you were raped? Is it

when you are called with sexy whistle? Or is it when you are being harassed? But what are the

possible causes of sexual harassment? In this study, the researchers investigate what are the

factors that motivate the people to harass someone or anyone in the society.

Back in the time of World War II, the Japanese soldiers sexually harassed many women

in the Philippines as part of their conquering the country. Many Filipinas were raped and the

worst part of this was that after they have been raped, they were also killed by these Japanese

soldiers. According to a study, 88% of 18-24 year old women have experienced sexual

harassment at least once in their lifetime, while 70% of it comes from a total stranger. On the

other hand, 58% experienced on the streets, major roads and eskinitas, and 70% have

experienced it during the day around 6AM to 6PM. Meanwhile, 50% of women experienced this

have done nothing after the incident. So the question is, what are the causes of this sexual

harassment?

All forms of sexual harassment in a society are unwelcomed and unwanted. They do not

want it to happen to them. Accordingly, they are afraid from being sexually harassed. Although

men also experienced sexual harassment but women were most affected by this issue. So in this

study, the researchers will study about the factors that motivate people to get involved in sexual

harassment. This study also determines the causes of sexual harassment and why those people

result to this case?

Statement of the problem

1. What is sexual harassment?

2. How does sexual harassment affect the lives of men and women?

3. What could be the possible factors of sexual harassment?

Objectives

This case study aims to determine the reasons why certain people resulted sexual

harassment. Specifically, the objectives of this study are:

1. Explain sexual harassment,

2. Identify underlying factors for sexual harassment, and;

3. Discuss what actions must be taken when one is sexually harassed.

Significant of the study

This case study can provide deeper meaning why sexual harassment takes place, and can

offer actions when harassment happens. This can also provide insights to those who suffer the

same case and can even warn other people on what they can do to prevent such incident from

happening.
Who would benefit from the study?

The following people will benefit from the result of this case study:

1. Women and children who suffer sexual harassment – an insight from other case who

were sexually abused might help them coped up with the emotional trauma.

2. Guidance Counselors and school officials – this can provide them feedbacks and can help

them document the factors for sexual harassment.

3. Other women and children who might be prone to sexual harassment can be informed of

what they are supposed to do.

4. Future researchers can further research on other factors for sexual harassment.

Participants

Three (3) women with cases of sexual harassment were identified and scheduled for

interview. The participants’ personal data was tabulated and presented in Table 1. Pseudonym

was used for anonymity of the respondents.

Table 1. Profile of Participants

Respondents Age Sex Birthday Civil Status Hobby Work

Respondent A 19 Female July 13, 1999 Single Dancing Service crew

Respondent B 20 Female July 14, 1998 Single None None

Respondent C 16 Female October 6, Single Playing None

 2002 Gadgets

Table 2 shows the Medical Health records provided by the respondents during the initial

interview.

Table 2. Medical Health Records Provided by the Respondents

Respondents Disease/s Sexually Surgical Cigarette Alcoholic

at present Transmitted Operation Smoking Beverages

Disease

Respondent A None None None 10 sticks per Occasional

day

Respondent B None None None 2-3 sticks per Occasional

day

Respondent C None None None - Occasional

For the initial interview, it was noted that respondent A graduated first honors in High

School and at present took up Bachelor of Science in Information Technology. Further interview

revealed that respondent A lives separately with her parents and at present stays with her

boyfriend’s house. Initial interview also revealed that her father has diabetes. As the interview

progressed, respondent A mentioned that she has a strong bond with her friends, however, she

shared that she frequently had a fight with her boyfriend and sometime with her other family
members. Respondent A also admitted that she suffered depression which resulted to loss of

appetite and poor concentration.

On the other hand, Respondent B was an Alternative Learning System student and also

lives separately with her parents and at present stays with her boyfriend’s house. Initial interview

revealed that her father has an allergy to oxidizing, a substance that is using for hair coloring. As

the interview progressed, respondent B mentioned that she do not have much friends, however,

she shared that she has a 50/50 situation with her boyfriend or live in partner. Respondent B also

admitted that she suffered depression which resulted to loss of appetite, poor concentration and

problem from sleeping. As the interview progressed, respondent B

Respondent C

Respondent C is a junior high school student of Doña Teodora Alonzo High School. She

shared that she is friendly and can easily associate with others though she only has few friends.

Initial interview revealed that she presently lives with her parents, and father is tricycle driver

while her mother is a housewife. Further, her mother was diagnosed with pneumonia. She also

revealed that she suffered an emotional trauma due to sexual harassment of her uncle.

Issues Discovered

To uncover the respondents’ experiences regarding sexual harassment, the following

questions were asked:

 1. Have you ever experienced sexual harassment?
[ Ikaw ba ay nakaranas na ng Sexual Harassment?]

2. Where and when did you experience this sexual harassment? How long were you
sexually harassed?
[Saan mo ito naranasan? Kailan? Gaano katagal?]

3. What did the suspect do to you? Who sexually harassed you? What did he say before
and after you were sexually harassed? Were you related to the suspect? If not, explain
your relationship to him?

[Anong ginawa sayo? Sino ang nang harass sayo? Anong sinabi niya? Ano mo siya o
ano siya?]

4. When did this harassment take place? How was the harassment started?
[Paano ito nangyari? Sa paanong paraan ito nagsimula?]

5. What action did you do? What was the result of your action?
[Anong aksyon ang iyong ginawa? Ano ang nagging resulta ng iyong aksyon?]

6. Were there bystanders or people who saw the incident?

[May nakakita o nakarinig ba sa nangyari?]

7. To whom did you share the incident that you experienced?

[Kanino mo shinare o kinwento ang nangyari sayo?]

8. In your own opinion what could be the reason/s why you were harassed?
[Sa iyong palagay, ano ang naging dahilan kung bakit ka naharass?]

9. What can you advice to others who might also experience sexual harassment?
[Ano ang iyong mapapayo sa iba na nakaranas / nakakaranas ng parehong
sitwasyon?]

10. How are you now? Were you still affected by this incident?
[Kamusta ka na ngayon? Naaapektuhan ka pa bang nangyaring panghaharass]

The respondents were asked in Filipino and were allowed to narrate their experiences in

the language that they are most comfortable with.

Case 1: Respondent A

For the question “Have you ever experienced sexual harassment?” Respondent A

answered “Yes” A follow up question was asked “Where and when did you experience this

sexual harassment? How long were you sexually harassed?” Respondent A was sexually

harassed at home when she was 12 years old and at a swimming pool in Bulacan last year.

To further uncover her experiences on sexual harassment, another questions were asked

during the interview “What did the suspect do to you? Who sexually harassed you? What did he

say before and after you were sexually harassed? Were you related to the suspect? If not, explain

your relationship to him?” “When did this harassment take place? How was the harassment

started?” Accordingly, she was touched in her private parts by a neighbor during the time that

she was alone at home. Meanwhile, a classmate in college did the same thing when she was in

swimming pool somewhere in Bulacan. The first incident that happened at home, the molester

asked her to spread her legs because according to her neighbor he will just look into it. Since she

was 12 years old at that time, she was not able to do something to defend herself, respondent A

shared that her neighbor succeeded in touching her private parts, On the other hand, her

classmate in college molested her while they were in swimming pool and said “pwede bang

makaisa? Kasi tigang ako ngayon?” Can I ask for a sex? But she refused and went away.

As the interview progressed, respondent A was asked the questions “What action did you

do? What was the result of your action?” She did not do anything and did not tell her parents of

what happened. But when asked “Were there bystanders or people who saw the incident?” Her

10-year-old sister saw what happened at home, while no other people saw the incident in a

swimming pool in Bulacan. To further ask what action did respondent A do, she was asked “To
whom did you share the incident that you experienced?” Accordingly, the first incident that

happened at home with her neighbor, she shared this to her boyfriend that time. After telling

what happened, he boyfriend got mad and advised her to stay away from the neighbor. The other

incident was shared to her classmates or best friends. Same advice was given by her best friends.

Still, she did not tell these incidents to her parents. To determine the reasons for being sexually

harassed, the respondent was asked “In your own opinion what could be the reason/s why you

were harassed?” and she replied “ewan, diko alam” [I don’t know]. This refers to the incident

that happened when she was 12 years old. This could be attributed to her age, that is why; no

other reasons were provided by the respondent. Meanwhile, regarding the incident that happened

in swimming pool, she answered “siguro lasing at saka kasi tigang” [I think since he’s drunk

and had no sexual intercourse for a long time].

As a reflection, she was asked “What can you advice to others who might also experience

sexual harassment?” or in Filipino “Ano ang iyong mapapayo sa iba na nakaranas /

nakakaranas ng parehong sitwasyon?” She replied:

“Sa mga nakaranas na dapat mag pakatatag at mag sumbong, huwag mong itago kasi

ikaw din ang mahihirapan. Sa mga nakakaranas, dapat umiwas na tayo at yun nga

magsumbong. Sa mga hindi pa nakakaranas, mag-ingat, yun lang”

[To those who experienced the same incident, they have to be strong and tell what

happened. Never hide this harassment because in the end, you will only be the one to suffer.

While for those at present experience this, they have to stay away and tell what happened

immediately. Lastly, for those who have not experienced this yet, be careful, that’s it].

As a final question, respondent A was asked “How are you now? Were you still affected

by this incident?” Accordingly, she has already moved on and just accepted what happened.
Case 2: Respondent B

Same set of questions were asked to respondent B. Respondent B answered the questions

in chronological order the same order with the questions given to Respondent A.

Respondent B shared that she experienced cat calling and was raped or forced to perform

sex. She mentioned that his incident happened at home of a classmate at Mayhaligue, Sta. Cruz,

Manila. She remembered that this harassment happened last School Year 2017 – 2018 after her

last day in ALS or alternative learning system where she was enrolled. Another incident

happened at her home when she was 12 years old where she was molested four times in two

weeks. Accordingly, her classmates in ALS did not say anything but forcefully entered the

comfort room and raped her. And as she went upstairs to a room, another classmate raped her.

After the incident, the rapists just said sorry thru texts and online. Aside from this, respondent

B’s uncle also molested her when she was 12 years old or 10 years ago. According to her, she

was sleeping and just woke up realizing that her uncle already touched her private parts.

For the incident that occurred with her two classmates, respondent B did not do any

action. She felt sad, cried the whole time at home. Her neighbor filed a case in court, however

this was dismissed due to insufficient evidence. On the other hand, regarding the uncle who

molested her, respondent B was not able to do an action since she was too young at the time this

incident occurred. For the incident with her two rapists, there were other classmates who saw

what happened and did nothing but just observed. While no other people saw what happened

when her uncle molested her.

 Further interview revealed that respondent B did not tell what happened to her parents

because she lived separately from them and stayed at that time with her boyfriend. She also did

not tell this to her boyfriend, however, the siblings of her boyfriend noticed her sudden change in

behavior and asked what happened. While regarding the incident with her uncle, she accidentally

mentioned the harassment due to her sudden outburst of emotion, her family did not believe her

and did not do any action to solve the case.

When asked what is the reason why she was raped and molested, for the first incident

with her classmates, she said that it could be with the effect of alcoholic beverages that they

drunk. While she shared that her uncle must have taken illegal drugs which was the reason why

she was molested.

As a realization, respondent B advised that girls like her should be careful not to go out

with other boys especially if they will drink alcohol. According to her, girls should stay away

from drinking alcohol with boys to prevent the same case from happening. Never trust anyone

even if they are your friends and always have limitation. Do not go out with anyone even if they

are your friends.

As a concluding part of the interview, respondent B said that she already forgot the

incident and became wise now so that the same incident will no longer happen in the future.

Case 3: Respondent C

Same set of questions were asked to respondent C. Respondent c answered the questions

in chronological order the same order with the questions given to Respondents A and B.

Respondent C shared that she experienced sexual harassment. She experienced this at

home last May 2018, October 2018, and February 2019 respectively. According to respondent C,
her uncle touched the private parts of her body while she was sleeping at that time. Respondent C

recalled:

” Sabi, nasa dibdib ko daw yung remote tapos biglang hinawakan at tiningnan tapos nung

natutulog ako, hinihipuan ako nung nagising ako sabi hinahanap lang daw niya yung sinturon”

[My uncle said that the remote control was on my chest and just suddenly touched my

breast. Then, while I was sleeping, I was suddenly awake when she touched my private body part

but according to him he was just looking for his belt].

After this incident, respondent C mentioned that she went to her friend where she

narrated what happened. From then on, she locked the door of her room to avoid the incident

from happening again. Unfortunately, there were no people who saw the incident. When asked

why her uncle did such harassment, she said that she did not know the reason but it could be due

to his uncle’s urge to release his sexual desire.

Respondent C recalled she was afraid to tell what happened to her family to avoid

conflict. This is the reason why, she advised those who experienced the same case to never be

afraid to report the incident. She also shared that until now she still remembers the incident and

frightened of what she experienced. She also mentioned that she lost her enthusiasm to stay at

home and in her life.

Related Literature

This study examined the potential risks factors associated with sexually harassing

behaviors within the framework of the four-factor model of sexual harassment. The factors

examined are unprofessional work environment, skewed gender ratio in the workplace,
knowledge of grievance procedure for sexual harassment, sexist attitudes among co-workers,

privacy of workspace, physical attractiveness, dress manner of victims, job status, and sex roles.

The dependent variable is incidence of sexual harassment which was evaluated using the

Sexual Experience Questionnaire developed by Fitzgerald, Shullman, Bailey, Richards, Swecker,

Gold, Ormerod, and Weitzman (1988). Data were collected from 657 women employees

working in Malaysian organizations. The findings showed that the predictions of the four-factor

model are also largely true in the case of the Malaysian workplace. Accordingly, sexual

harassment behaviors are fairly widespread in Malaysia (researchgate.com).

Sexual harassment: A Review of the Literature

We critically review the published research on sexual harassment. Definitional,

epidemiological, etiological, treatment, and prevention issues are examined as well as the

literature on the effects of sexual harassment. Suggestions for future research are provided.

Although there are many controversies concerning the definition of sexual harassment, it is clear

that there are subtypes of sexual harassment, such as gender harassment, unwanted sexual

attention, and sexual coercion. Existing research indicates that sexual harassment is a frequent

form of victimization of women, affecting around half of all women, with verbal harassment

being more common that nonverbal harassment. It appears common for sexual harassment

victims to experience negative psychological, occupational, and economic consequences,

although prospective research utilizing valid and comprehensive assessment methods needs to be

conducted. Little is known about the etiology of sexual harassment, although models that take
into account organizational and individual variables seem to account for more of the variance.

Treatment of victims and harassers is hampered by a lack of treatment outcome research.

(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178997000116).

Sexual Harassment: A Predictor to Job Satisfaction and Work Stress among Women

Employees

This study examines the predictions on sexual harassment experience towards job

satisfaction and work stress among female employees at three universities in the Klang Valley,

Malaysia. A questionnaire consisting of four sections has been used for this research. The four

sections measured sexual harassment experience, job satisfaction, work stress and respondents’

information. A total of 1423 participants were selected through simple random sampling

technique. Results show that more than half of the sample has had sexual harassment experience.

Female employees aged between 26 to 39 years, married, and having length of service less than 5

years had more sexual harassment experiences. Another result showed a significant negative

relationship between sexual harassment experience with job satisfaction and significant positive

relationship between sexual harassment experiences with work stress. Results also indicate that

sexual harassment can be a predictor of job satisfaction and work stress.

(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042812051750).

Dagdagan ang related literature. Include ng porsyento ng mga na harass sa Pilipnas

example. Ilang poryesnto ang naharass na babae, batang babae, batang lalaki, saang lugar may

mataas na harassment rural ba o urban?

 Assessment of the Case Study

After conducting an interview to the respondents, the researcher has noted and

summarized the reasons or factors why people are involved in sexual harassment. Figure 1
summarizes the factors that motivate society to get involved in sexual harassment after

conducting the case study to selected respondents.

Sexual
harassment

Urge to release Vulnerability

Alcohol Illegal drugs
sexual desire of the victim

Figure 1. Factors that motivate society to get involved in sexual harassment

The researcher found out that the factors that motivate society to get involved in sexual

harassment are namely; alcohol, urge to release sexual desire, illegal drugs, and vulnerability of

the victim. Sexual harassment happened when someone is intoxicated with alcohol and took

illegal drugs. This might be the reason why people harassed women. Another factor is the urge to

release sexual desire through the use of vulnerable women whom they think are defenseless and

cannot report to proper authority.

The action taken by the respondents were not effective since their respective cases were

not reported to proper authorities. The researcher realized that when the incident was not

reported to proper authorities, the harassment remained unsolved. Another lesson learned is
always have an open line of communication with the family members so that one will never be

ashamed to share her experiences. Since I want to pursue information technology and work with

a prestigious company, the researcher will be more cautious when socializing with co-workers to

avoid such case from happening.