Sexual Harassment in the Active-Duty Navy: Findings from the 1991 Navy-Wide Survey

Abstract : This report presents the sexual harassment findings from the second administration of the Navy Equal Opportunity/Sexual Harassment Survey (NEOSH) in 1991. This survey assesses the occurrence, types, and consequences of sexual harassment for active-duty personnel. It also measures perceptions concerning organizational climate and leader's support in eliminating harassment in the Navy. Forty-four percent of female enlisted and 33% of female officer respondents indicated that had been sexually harassed during 1-year survey period. Very small percentages of male enlisted (8%) and male officer (2%) respondents reported sexual harassment. These findings indicate a statistically significant increase from the results of the 1989 NEOSH Survey for two groups: female officer and male enlisted personnel. Details about the type of harassment, characteristics of victims and perpetrators, and actions taken are compared between the 1989 and 1991 surveys. In addition, explanations for the differences in the occurrence rates found by various military surveys are addressed.