Rena Zito, assistant professor of sociology, spoke with the Burlington Times-News about research on sexual harassment and assault.
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Rena Zito, professor of sociology, was quoted extensively in a recent Burlington Times-News feature article on the sociological perspective on sexual harassment and sexual assault.
In the article, Zito described how sexual harassment and sexual assault exist along a continuum and share common cultural and structural origins. In particular, she provided an overview for Times-News readers on the ways in which gender and power shape patterns sexual harassment.
“If someone is being harassed by a superior, the extent to which they can respond to that harassment or report it is going to be influenced by their belief that there are going to be negative consequences for doing so,” Zito told the Times-News. “There are also going to be negative consequences of responding to street harassment by a stranger, including the fear of escalating to physical violence.”
Read the full article here.
Zito is an expert on gendered patterns of criminal offending. In addition to her role as coordinator of the Criminal Justice Studies program at Elon, she teaches multiple criminal justice studiesz courses, including Gender & Crime.