Abstract

James Kampyongo, Chitalu Kalima and Inonge Kambwili

The study was conducted to explore the perspectives, understanding and reporting patterns of sexual harassment, among staff and students at the University of Zambia (UNZA). The participants included 76 academic staff, 128 non academic staff and 885 students who were randomly selected from the different schools at UNZA. A self-reported questionnaire was developed and piloted for use in this study. The results indicated that sexual harassment occurred among different categories of the UNZA community, with 37% of all the participants reporting to have been sexually harassed. There was found to be a discrepancy in the understanding of the term sexual harassment with majority of the participants only recognizing overt acts such as “subtle or overt pressure for sexual favors” to be acts of sexual harassment. Reporting of sexual harassment was found to be minimal, with only a quarter of those who were sexually harassed having told someone about the act. The majority of those who were sexually harassed did not make a formal complaint because they were embarrassed or they did not believe any action would be taken. It may be concluded that sexual harassment at the UNZA is a challenge to be addressed seriously.