Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Examining the immediate and enduring psychological impact of street harassment on women’s mental health

Examining the immediate and enduring psychological impact of street harassment on women’s mental... Many women report experiences of street harassment during their lifetime. Previous quantitative survey research has shown the variety of ways in which this type of harassment can impact upon a victim’s life, including restricting their freedom of movement and fear of further victimisation. The purpose of this study is understand the immediate and enduring psychological impact of street harassment on female victim-survivors.Design/methodology/approachThe present study aims to explore, qualitatively, women’s experiences of street harassment through thematic analysis of on 35 online blog posts. Data were collected from the “Stop Street Harassment” website, where women are invited to share their experiences anonymously.FindingsThree main themes were generated from the data. First was the age at which women began to experience street harassment, with recurring early incidents during formative childhood years. Second was the impact that experiences had on their mental health and psychological well-being with feelings of shame, fear, self-loathing, as well as decreased self-esteem and confidence experienced in the immediate aftermath – though the longer-term negative emotions reported were enduring feelings of anger alongside a constant state of anxiety from feelings of vulnerability to further victimisation. The final theme was the modification of behaviour after experiencing street harassment where women choose to avoid walking alone on the streets or consciously changed their clothing choices, to avoid being harassed.Originality/valueThis study offers a further qualitative insight into the real-life experience and psychological consequences of street harassment upon survivors’ mental health. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Mental Health and Social Inclusion Emerald Publishing

Examining the immediate and enduring psychological impact of street harassment on women’s mental health

Download PDF
11 pages

Loading next page...
 
/lp/emerald-publishing/examining-the-immediate-and-enduring-psychological-impact-of-street-kvgSRNCa5A

References (56)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
© Emerald Publishing Limited
ISSN
2042-8308
eISSN
2042-8316
DOI
10.1108/mhsi-07-2023-0080
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Many women report experiences of street harassment during their lifetime. Previous quantitative survey research has shown the variety of ways in which this type of harassment can impact upon a victim’s life, including restricting their freedom of movement and fear of further victimisation. The purpose of this study is understand the immediate and enduring psychological impact of street harassment on female victim-survivors.Design/methodology/approachThe present study aims to explore, qualitatively, women’s experiences of street harassment through thematic analysis of on 35 online blog posts. Data were collected from the “Stop Street Harassment” website, where women are invited to share their experiences anonymously.FindingsThree main themes were generated from the data. First was the age at which women began to experience street harassment, with recurring early incidents during formative childhood years. Second was the impact that experiences had on their mental health and psychological well-being with feelings of shame, fear, self-loathing, as well as decreased self-esteem and confidence experienced in the immediate aftermath – though the longer-term negative emotions reported were enduring feelings of anger alongside a constant state of anxiety from feelings of vulnerability to further victimisation. The final theme was the modification of behaviour after experiencing street harassment where women choose to avoid walking alone on the streets or consciously changed their clothing choices, to avoid being harassed.Originality/valueThis study offers a further qualitative insight into the real-life experience and psychological consequences of street harassment upon survivors’ mental health.

Journal

Mental Health and Social Inclusion – Emerald Publishing

Published: Dec 2, 2024

Keywords: Street harassment; Sexualisation; Psychological harm; Anxiety; Self-esteem; Anger; Vulnerability; Behavioural modification; Online blogs

There are no references for this article.