Sexual harassment in the military

Sexual harassment in the military is unwanted sexual behaviour experienced as threatening, offensive, or otherwise upsetting, which occurs in a military setting.[2][3][4][5]

Sexual harassment is more common in military than civilian life.[3][6] Military women and men experience unwanted behaviours disproportionately,[3][4][7][8][9][10] particularly younger women and girls.[4][11][12][13][14][15] Other groups at high risk include partners of personnel, child cadets, and military detainees.

Risk factors characteristic of a military setting include the young average age of personnel, isolated workplaces, the minority status of women, hierarchical power relationships, a culture of conformity, the predominance of traditionally masculine values and behaviours, and a heavy drinking culture.[4][10][16][17][18] Harassment is particularly common in certain settings, notably centres for initial military training[1][19][20][21][22] and theatres of war.[10][23][24]

Experience of harassment can be traumatic. It increases the risk of stress-related mental illness,[10] particularly post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).[6] Nonetheless, typically most of those targeted choose not to raise a formal complaint, expecting repercussions if they do.[3][4][7][9][12][13][25][26]

Despite the development of prevention programmes in recent years, official statistics in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States report increasing rates of sexual harassment in the military.[4][10][7][8][9][15]