Second Order of Sexual Harassment - SOSH

Abstract

Gender-based violence cannot be overcome without a wide social support for the victims, which is dramatically limited by the violence against those who take an active stand in favor of survivors. The struggle against sexual violence requires simultaneous actions to protect both the direct victims of sexual harassment and the victims of second order sexual harassment -SOSH-. Although the first definition of SOSH comes from 1990 (Dziech & Weiner, 1990) there has been a lack a research on the issue, despite its social and scientific importance. The objective of this article is two-fold: a) to provide a concept of SOSH useful to present developments for science and society, through identifying specific situations of persons and those with whom they work and have suffered SOSH; b) to disclose the main contributions to face these situations through several social aspects on legal, university, citizenship, media and political perspectives. Using a qualitative methodology we conclude by highlighting the need for developing joint actions of the whole society to identify and legislate the SOSH, while empowering survivors and the ones who support them, in an attempt of eradicating gender-based violence.