Going beyond the system: The role of trust in coworker support and organization-based self-esteem in dealing with sexual harassment issues

Abstract

Sexual harassment has been an entrenched problem in the workplace. Using the 2016 Merit Principles Survey from the US Merit Systems Protection Board, this study advances our understanding of the formal reporting of workplace sexual harassment by focusing on the crucial roles of coworker support and organization-based self-esteem. The findings show that both coworker support and organization-based self-esteem provide a sense of an individual’s worth to the organization, and eventually lead to a positive impact on the perceived effectiveness of formal reporting, as well as an indirect effect, through influence on the procedural justice perceptions of the formal reporting system. This study highlights the importance of establishing both a supportive work-group climate and a respectful and inclusive working environment in order to give employees the confidence to formally report incidences of sexual harassment.

Acknowledgments

I thank George A. Krause, Bradley E. Wright, J. Edward Kellough, Justine E. Tinkler, and Hal G. Rainey for their helpful suggestions and comments on earlier drafts. I also thank the editor and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. The responsibility for any errors or omissions rests solely with the author.

Notes

1 Respondents who did not respond to one or more survey questions and those who chose “do not know” were eliminated in the process of data cleaning. No evidence indicates a meaningful difference between the final sample and those excluded due to missing data.

2 Twenty-four agencies were included as agency-fixed effects: Air Force; Department of Agriculture; Department of the Army; Department of Commerce; Department of Defense; Department of Justice; Department of Labor; Department of Energy; Department of Education; Environmental Protection Agency; Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; General Services Administration; Department of Homeland Security; Department of Housing and Urban Development; Department of the Interior; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Department of Navy; Office of Personnel Management; Securities and Exchange Commission; Department of State; Social Security Administration; Department of Transportation; Department of the Treasury; and Department of Veterans Affairs.

3 SRMR and CD are the only model fit parameters available when using sample weights and robust standard errors.

4 See supplementary material for summary statistical data retrieved from the “No FEAR Act” report on each agency’s website.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jungyeon Park

Jungyeon Park ([email protected]) is a Ph.D. candidate in Public Administration and Policy at the University of Georgia. Her areas of interest include performance management, organizational theory and behavior, and discrimination issues in the public sector.