Sexual harassment on the Internet

Sexual harassment offline is a well-known, highly prevalent, extensively investigated, and intensively treated social problem. An accepted model classifies sexual harassment behaviors into the categories of gender harassment, unwanted sexual attention, and sexual coercion. Theory and research show that sexual harassment behavior occurs as a product of person x situation characteristics and has substantial personal and organizational costs. This article reviews the available information on sexual harassment in cyberspace, equates this phenomenon with what has been learned about sexual harassment offline, points to specific characteristics of online culture and technology that reinforce the behavior, and proposes ways of promoting prevention.