Braswell, Viola Scarlett (2025) The Impact of Claimant and Observer Gender on the Perceived Severity of Verbal Sexual Harassment. Bachelor thesis, Psychology.
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Abstract
Perceptions of sexual harassment (SH) are influenced by the gender of both the person experiencing the SH and the person observing it. Verbal sexual harassment (VSH), an ambiguous and subtle form of sexual harassment, is particularly vulnerable to gendered perceptions and biases. This study investigated how the gender of the claimant (SH target) and the gender of the observer affect the perceived severity of verbal sexual harassment. We hypothesized that (1) VSH scenarios with a female claimant would be perceived as more severe than those with a male claimant, (2) female observers would perceive the VSH scenario as more severe, and (3) observer gender would moderate the relationship between the gender of the claimant and perceived severity of the VSH. Using a between-subjects vignette design (N = 144), participants read a workplace scenario in which either a male or a female employee experienced verbal sexual harassment. Participants then rated the perceived severity of the incident. Our results supported both main effect hypotheses: VSH scenarios with female claimants were rated as more severe, and female observers perceived the VSH scenario as more severe. However, no significant interaction was found between the gender of the claimant and the observer's gender. These results highlight the influence that gender has on the perceived severity of verbal sexual harassment. Our findings have important implications for workplace training, reporting systems, and legal evaluations of verbal sexual harassment, specifically the need to address gender bias in how sexual harassment is received and validated.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Bachelor) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Graso, M. |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | None [Bachelor Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 11 Jul 2025 14:10 |
| Last Modified: | 11 Jul 2025 14:10 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/5493 |
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