Sexual Violence Prevention Program Geared Towards Engineers

Numerous studies have demonstrated that sexual harassment of women is a pervasive issue in male-dominated fields. This is a particular concern in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) educational and professional climates. Because victims of sexual harassment can experience negative effects after the incidents, many women end up leaving the field. For my thesis project, I set out to create a curriculum that would teach engineering students about sexual harassment, gender bias, and their effects. In order to do this, engineering students (N = 10) participated in focus groups and individual interviews, where they were asked about their perceptions and responses to potential sexual harassment situations. Results of the focus groups revealed that the main topics that need to be addressed among engineering students are inclusion of all people, especially women; the definition and examples of sexual harassment; how to pick up on social cues; and bystander intervention techniques. A curriculum was then created that centered around those topics in a way that does not aim to make students uncomfortable, but instead aims to make them more conscious of their words and actions, as well as more empathetic to others’ viewpoints and experiences. The presentation ends with five scenarios based on the situations students brought up in the focus groups, in order for the students to practice what they’ve learned in a controlled setting before going out into the real world. I hope that by integrating this curriculum into first-year engineering classes, students will have more confidence to intervene if they see or hear something that could classify as sexual harassment. Ultimately, reductions in sexual harassment in educational settings can facilitate the academic and professional success of all students.