The Naive Misuse of Power: Nonconscious Sources of Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment is considered from the perspective of power abuse in general. Recent research on sexually aggressive men has underscored the importance of power and dominance as a motivator of their behavior toward women. One striking feature of both sexual harassment and the misuse of power is the lack of awareness offenders often show regarding the inappropriateness of their actions. This lack of awareness is similar to automatic or nonconscious effects demonstrated in social perception and judgment research, such as the unintentional influence of one's stereotypes informing impressions of others. The possibility that having power within a situation automatically and nonconsciously triggers a sexuality schema, just as racial or gender features automatically trigger stereotypes of that group, is discussed and supporting research is described. It is shown, for example, that for men likely to sexually harass, merely activating the concept of power without their knowledge causes them to find the same woman more attractive. The possible origins of the automatic power → sex link, and its implications for preventing sexual harassment behavior, are discussed.

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