Sexual Harassment against Nursing Students: A Case Study of Nigeria

Abstract

This paper examines how sexual harassment impacts on student nurses. The purpose of the paper is to find out the prevalence of unwarranted sexual behaviors against student nurses in Nigeria. Forty one students participated in the survey in which they were asked questions to indicate their feelings, to identify harassers and way in which they cope with sexual harassment behaviors. The findings showed that primary initiators of sexual were physicians and older bosses. The most common feeling among students who were harassed was anger. Fifty-one percent indicated that the most commonly coping method was to complain to family members, followed by leaving the scene. The paper concludes by noting that nursing students in Nigeria were frequently exposed to various sexual harassments. It recommends a series of recommendations to ameliorate unwelcome sexual harassments among student nurses.

Keywords: Sexual harassment, coping, questionnaires, perpetrators and Nigeria