Harassment of women in higher education institutions (HEIs) is a global problem, and its widespread occurrence is having negative consequences for individuals, communities and institutions. Such negative consequences lead to a high rate of female dropouts in higher education. Ensuring a safe learning environment for females is important to provide educational opportunities and overcome such inequalities in HEIs. For this purpose, this study aims to identify the influence of harassment and the contributing factors that cause harassment against females in HEIs around the globe.
This study used a narrative literature review (NLR) design, targeting major electronic bibliographic databases for study selection. Eight themes emerged from the literature: concept, influence, challenges, mitigating strategies and global policies to address harassment against women in HEIs.
Imbalanced power dynamics, a lack of policies against harassment in higher institutions, a lack of accountability, the silence of women and the unstable and patriarchal structure of the organisation are some contributing factors that cause harassment against women in HEIs. Such harassment leads to various mental, emotional and social consequences, including anxiety, depression, social isolation, lack of confidence, insecurity, deficient trust, poor academic performance and a high dropout rate among females in higher education.
This paper includes all the necessary aspects of harassment against females in HEIs, including consequences, factors, challenges, mitigating strategies and policies around the globe. This detailed review of every aspect can be used to analyse the current situation of HEIs and fill the gaps in current anti-harassment policies to provide a safe learning environment for every individual.
This study covers all the aspects of harassment against females in HEIs across the globe that were not previously examined.
