title: "That Is So Common Everyday . . . Everywhere You Go": Sexual Harassment of Workers in Assisted Living.
abstract: In assisted living (AL) facilities, workers are intimately involved in the lives of residents. Existing research on AL demonstrates the imbalance of this environment, which is a personal home for the residents and a workplace for staff. Using observational and interview data collected from six AL facilities, this grounded theory project analyzes how AL staff define, understand, and negotiate sexual comments, joking, and physical touch. We developed a conceptual model to describe how such harassment was perceived, experienced by AL workers, and how they responded. Sexualized behavior or harassment was experienced by workers of every status. We found that words and actions were contextualized based on resident and worker characteristics and the behavior. Staff members refused to engage residents, redirected them, or reframed the words and gestures to get the job done. Reporting the incidents was less common. We conclude by discussing implications for policy and research.
authors.affiliation: 1 Georgia State University, GA, Atlanta, USA.
authors.forename: Elisabeth O
authors.initials: EO
authors.lastname: Burgess
authors.affiliation: 1 Georgia State University, GA, Atlanta, USA.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Barmon
authors.affiliation: 2 Georgia Department of Human Services, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Moorhead
authors.affiliation: 3 Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Molly M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Perkins
authors.affiliation: 4 Army Public Health Center (Provisional), Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Alexis A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Bender
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D040561:Assisted Living Facilities; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D066296:Grounded Theory; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D017406:Sexual Harassment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017132:Workplace; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: assisted living; direct care workers; qualitative methods; sexual harassment