Sexual harassment and victimization of students: a case study of a higher education institution in South Africa

INTRODUCTION: Sexual harassment has been identified as a major public health problem that is hidden in most institutions/organizations. OBJECTIVE: This study assessed sexual harassment and victimization of students in a higher institution in South Africa. METHODS: A quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive design was used in this study. The target population was registered students of the higher education institution and the sample size was 342. Questionnaire was used for data collection and data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 23.0 program. The basic principles of ethics were duly observed and the ethical clearance certificate was obtained prior to data collection. RESULTS: The findings revealed that 27 (17.3%) of the male and 47 (25.5%) of the female respondents (P = 0.047) had personally experienced unwanted touching. Two (1.3%) male and 5 (2.7%) female students admitted that they have been raped. Seventeen (10.8%) of the males and 19 (10.2%) of the females had been coerced to comply with a sexual relationship on campus. CONCLUSION: This study shows that both male and female students on campus are experiencing different forms of sexual harassment.