title: Survey of academic field experiences (SAFE): trainees report harassment and assault.
abstract: Little is known about the climate of the scientific fieldwork setting as it relates to gendered experiences, sexual harassment, and sexual assault. We conducted an internet-based survey of field scientists (N = 666) to characterize these experiences. Codes of conduct and sexual harassment policies were not regularly encountered by respondents, while harassment and assault were commonly experienced by respondents during trainee career stages. Women trainees were the primary targets; their perpetrators were predominantly senior to them professionally within the research team. Male trainees were more often targeted by their peers at the research site. Few respondents were aware of mechanisms to report incidents; most who did report were unsatisfied with the outcome. These findings suggest that policies emphasizing safety, inclusivity, and collegiality have the potential to improve field experiences of a diversity of researchers, especially during early career stages. These include better awareness of mechanisms for direct and oblique reporting of harassment and assault and, the implementation of productive response mechanisms when such behaviors are reported. Principal investigators are particularly well positioned to influence workplace culture at their field sites.
authors.affiliation: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Department of Anthropology, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America.
authors.forename: Kathryn B H
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Clancy
authors.affiliation: Skidmore College, Department of Anthropology, Saratoga Springs, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Robin G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.affiliation: University of Illinois, Chicago, Department of Women, Children, and Family Health Science, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America.
authors.forename: Julienne N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Rutherford
authors.affiliation: Harvard University, Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America.
authors.forename: Katie
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hinde
mesh_terms: D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D012106:Research; D012586:Science; D017406:Sexual Harassment; D017132:Workplace