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Data from 503 university students and community members were analyzed with path analysis, which showed racial identity as a consistent predictor across models and indicated distress-linked outcomes in one model. Findings also show high prevalence, with 90% reporting experiences such as catcalls, whistles, or stares.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/stranger-harassment-an-investigation-of-the-protective-role-of-feminism-and-womanism-dissertation/141755/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/stranger-harassment-an-investigation-of-the-protective-role-of-feminism-and-womanism-dissertation/141755.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Theodora","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-29","2026-08-25",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",13,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What does the study define as stranger harassment?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Stranger harassment refers to harassment experiences in public spaces committed by men the woman does not know. The dissertation treats it as a distinct line of sexism research with specific outcomes for women.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How was the study conducted and what sample size was used?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"The dissertation collected data from 503 university students and community members. Analyses used path analysis to evaluate model fit and individual pathways.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What protective factor did the results highlight?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"Racial identity showed a consistent impact on stranger harassment across the original and post hoc models. 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Yetzer  \nSTRANGER HARASSMENT: AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PROTECTIVE ROLE  \nOF FEMINISM AND WOMANISM  \nMegan Yetzer  \nDissertation  \nApproved:  \n\n| Advisor\u003Cbr>Dr. Dawn Johnson |\n| --- |\n| Committee Member\u003Cbr>Dr. Kathryn Feltey |\n| Committee Member\u003Cbr>Dr. Suzette Speight |\n| Committee Member\u003Cbr>Dr. David Tokar |\n\nCommittee Member Dr. Ingrid Weigold  \nAccepted:  \n\n| Department Chair\u003Cbr>Dr. Paul Levy |\n| --- |\n| Dean of the College\u003Cbr>Dr. John Green |\n| Dean of the Graduate School Dr. Chand Midha |\n\nDate  \nABSTRACT  \nStranger harassment is a specific line of sexism research that documents women’s experiences of harassment in public spaces perpetrated by men that they do not know. These experiences can lead to many negative outcomes for women such as higher rates of body shame, body surveillance, depression, disordered eating, and increases in fear of rape (Fairchild & Rudman, 2008) . The negative impacts of stranger harassment necessitate identifying what factors might be protective for women and reduce psychological distress. Data was collected from a total of 503 university students and community members. Path analysis revealed that none of the models demonstrated adequate model-data fit. Individual paths were examined in an effort to clarify trends within the data. Racial identity of the participants was observed to have a consistent impact on stranger harassment within all of the original and post hoc models. One additional finding observed with one model indicated that stranger harassing experiences did indeed result in high rates of psychological distress. It also became apparent that women experience stranger harassment often, as 90% of participants answered yes when they were asked if they had ever experienced catcalls, whistles, or stares from a stranger. Overall, between 25.8% -90.1% of the women in the current study experienced some form of stranger harassment, ranging from sexist remarks or behaviors from a stranger (83.3%) to direct or explicit pressure to cooperate sexually from a stranger (25.8%) .  \nThus preliminary evidence adds support to the literature base that stranger harassment is phenomenon warranting further study separate from more general sexual harassment  \nresearch, and that a woman’s racial identity is likely to impact her experience of stranger harassment. It also points to the necessity for future research to investigate protective factors for reducing psychological distress.  \nTABLE OF CONTENTS  \nPage  \nLIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... viii  \nLIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... ix  \nCHAPTER  \nI. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................... 1  \nImportance to the Field of Counseling Psychology .................................................2  \nStranger Harassment Research & Impact of Stranger Harassment .........................4  \nCoping with Stranger Harassment ...........................................................................8  \nIdentification as a Feminist and/or Womanist .......................................................10  \nConclusion ............................................................................................................. 15  \nII. A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ..........................................................................16  \nSexism Literature Overview .................................................................................. 16  \nSexism Frequency and Negative Impacts ..............................................................22  \nF","cbCaim9nNcLoA80m","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaim9nNcLoA80m","pdf",1289232,192,"English","# CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION\n## Importance to the Field of Counseling Psychology\n## Stranger Harassment Research & Impact of Stranger Harassment\n## Coping with Stranger Harassment\n## Identification as a Feminist and/or Womanist\n## Conclusion\n# II. A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE\n## Sexism Literature Overview\n## Sexism Frequency and Negative Impacts\n## Feminist Theory and Psychological Practice\n## The Protective Role of Feminism\n## The Feminist Label vs. Feminist Beliefs and Attitudes\n## The Inclusion of the Womanist Label\n## Implications of Stranger Harassment\n## Conclusions of Stranger Harassment Literature\n## The Present Study\n# III. METHODS\n## Participants\n## Procedures\n## Measures\n## Demographic sheet\n## Stranger Harassment\n## Psychological Distress\n## Feminist & Womanist Identification & Beliefs\n## Empowerment\n## Critical Consciousness Inventory\n# IV. RESULTS","[{\"question\":\"What does the study define as stranger harassment?\",\"answer\":\"Stranger harassment refers to harassment experiences in public spaces committed by men the woman does not know. The dissertation treats it as a distinct line of sexism research with specific outcomes for women.\"},{\"question\":\"How was the study conducted and what sample size was used?\",\"answer\":\"The dissertation collected data from 503 university students and community members. Analyses used path analysis to evaluate model fit and individual pathways.\"},{\"question\":\"What protective factor did the results highlight?\",\"answer\":\"Racial identity showed a consistent impact on stranger harassment across the original and post hoc models. The study also found evidence that distress can result from stranger harassment in at least one model.\"}]","Stranger Harassment: An Investigation of the Protective Role of Feminism and Womanism - Dissertation | PDF",484]