Addressing sexual harassment in a sexually charged national culture: a Journal of Applied Communication Research forum |
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| Authors: | Joann Keyton Robin Clair Cristin A Compton Debbie S Dougherty Diane Forbes Berthoud Jimmie Manning |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Communication, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USAjkeyton@ncsu.edu;3. Lamb School of Communication, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA;4. School of Communication Studies, Kent State University, Kent, OH, USA;5. Department of Communication, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA;6. Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA;7. Department of Communication, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL, USA |
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| Abstract: | Sexual harassment remains a persistent workplace problem. The 2017 #Metoo movement and what-have-come-to-be routine news stories about sexual hostility, sexual assault, and sexual harassment in American organizations have opened wounds and reinvigorated public commentary. Although the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sets forth guidelines for organizations to follow, questions remain about what counts as sexual harassment, and what is an organization’s responsibility in maintaining a harassment-free workplace for its employees. At the invitation of the editor, seven organizational communication scholars responded to a series of questions addressing seven issues related to sexual harassment. These are: sexual harassment policy and training; the responsibilities of bystanders of sexual harassment; organizational culture that provides more support to the harasser than the harassed; the intersection of race with sexual harassment; same-sex harassment and female-to-male harassment; and what can be learned from public movements (e.g. #Metoo). The co-authors’ responses describe sexually harassing situation with which they are familiar. |
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| Keywords: | sexual harassment organizational communication discrimination gendering race |
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