According to data from American Family Survey, women are generally more likely to consider certain acts to be sexual harassment. These acts include asking someone to go to lunch, making sexual jokes or asking for sexual favors. California residents may also have a different point of view about sexual harassment depending on their age and level of education. The survey itself consisted of 3,000 adults that roughly emulated the makeup of the country as a whole.
As a general rule, those who were older were more likely to view an action as sexual harassment than younger Americans. For instance, roughly 66 percent of respondents who were 65 and older said a request for a sexual favor is always harassment. However, only about half of those between 18 and 29 felt the same way.
Of those who responded to the study, 60 percent of women said that they had experienced sexual harassment. Furthermore, females said that most of the events occurred at work. Only 28 percent of male respondents said that they had experienced sexual harassment. Researchers found that a person’s political views may play a role as it relates to what constitutes consent. However, a majority of respondents felt that consent was necessary before a person engaged in sexual activity or other intimate actions with another person.
Workers who experience harassment at work may want to take legal action. For example, it may be possible to file a charge with the EEOC or file a lawsuit against the employer. A legal professional who handles employment law cases could assist a worker in obtaining a favorable outcome in the matter. This may include receiving a financial award or other relief.
