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How serious is the problem of sexual harassment in US philosophy PhD programs?

In our newest “how can we help you?” thread, a reader asks:

I recently read a post on Daily Nous written by a philosophy professor reflecting on her experience of sexual harassment during her PhD years. What struck me most was that when she tried to address it, the response she received was sarcasm and dismissal. She wrote a line that stayed with me: “The university is the power structure. The university is the Man.” She also described how, even during ordinary academic conversations, she had to pretend to be engaged in discussion while quietly monitoring the physical distance between herself and certain men.

Reading this made me deeply uneasy. As an Asian woman, I experienced quite a lot of sexual harassment during my graduate studies in my own country. For a long time, I told myself that perhaps this was partly because gender equality in parts of Asia still lags behind. I hoped that things might be better in Europe or the United States.

Now I am about to begin a PhD in the United States, and reading this account has made me worried. I would genuinely like to ask those who have studied or worked in American PhD programs: how serious is the problem of sexual harassment there?

I think it could be helpful to hear readers’ general impressions on this. Please note, however, that I’ll need to moderate very carefully, as the Cocoon’s mission precludes posting allegations, insinuations, or content that individuals or institutions could deem defamatory. As such, I respectfully ask that comments please narrowly address the OP’s query.

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6 responses to “How serious is the problem of sexual harassment in US philosophy PhD programs?”

  1. Anonymous

    I’d say that it is significantly better than in Asia. Although I have only had experience with a couple of universities in the US and in Asia respectively, the vibe I observed was consistent with the overall societal and cultural vibe, so I believe it is somewhat representative.

    Also, it’s not just my personal experience (I had zero problem in either place), but also all the female cohorts I hang out with.

    Diverting a bit from the question, I think it is also a bit harder to get personal with profs in the US, perhaps because they are more aware of harassment issues and want to avoid that. So it is indirect evidence that the issue is better in the US than in Asia. (In Asia, I got really close to a few profs by simply doing very well in class or writing a paper under their supervision, not so in the US.)

    Hope it helps.

    Reply
  2. Woman Philosopher

    I was applying for PhD programs about ten years ago and my concern was significant enough that I made sure to ask grad students about this at each school where I was accepted. I made some decisions partially based on those grad students’ assessments. My sense is that sexual harassment remains a problem in academic philosophy in the US, but that certainly shouldn’t require you to write off all American doctoral programs. I would recommend talking to current students in the program you’re planning to attend, learning about their sense of departmental dynamics and history, figuring out what support exists, and thinking about what you can create among yourselves as grad students.

    The volume Singing in the Fire, edited by Linda Martín Alcoff, is worth checking out––not that the experiences of the women philosophers writing in it are characteristic of graduate programs today, but it both helps catalogue that history and strategize around the issues that are still with us.

    Reply
  3. Anonymous

    I can only speak to my own experience as a woman in the profession in North America (one who at this point is midway along in a TT position). But I think it is worth sharing since it is a counterpart to your concern.

    I feel quite fortunate that I have never had an incident of harassment. There have been moments where I think people have taken me less seriously because I am a woman (they have seemed confused by what I said and then enthusiastically endorsed it when a male colleague says something similar, for example). But at no point has a professional philosopher made me feel sexualized or uncomfortable in a sexualized fashion in a professional or quasi-professional context. (This is worded weirdly because I HAVE had undergraduate students in my classes hit on me, which I neither encouraged nor liked in the slightest. That has been uncomfortable and annoying. But I always felt the faculty when I was a ta and my colleagues when I was a professor had my back in these circumstances and were willing to provide good advice on how to report and handle the situation.) I did date a fellow student while in graduate school, but that relationship both began and ended cordially in a way that had no professional ramifications.

    My casual sense is that my experience is similar to that of my female friends and colleagues. So there are at least pockets of the profession that may have some gendered issues, but that may not have have serious harassment concerns. But of course, my friends and colleagues are mostly people who have been at the same institutions as me, so I cannot say whether this experience is more broadly representative.

    (I would echo the commentator above– I had no real personal relationship with any of the faculty when I was a graduate student (though they were all very responsible in a highly professional emotions-off sense) and I’m sure that helped make harassment less common. That had its downsides, but a significant upside as well. At least in the case of my institution, that non-personal relationship was not gendered– male students would tell you the same thing about their relationship with the same faculty members.)

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  4. Anonymous

    The only thing I’d add to this horribly difficult topic is that university responses to allegations of sexual harassment are almost always unsatisfying. The university wants to avoid bad press, takes a very long time with investigations, and rarely if ever notifies all relevant parties as to the results of investigations. This leaves the institution very vulnerable to repeat offenders, because students might not always know when certain professors have been disciplined in the past. (To be clear, I get it, maybe being disciplined should be a private affair!)

    Reply
  5. Anonymous

    OP might benefit from Hannah H. Kim’s AAPT paper “Advice for My Younger Teaching Self.” I am not sure if linking it here is a good idea from the perspective of comment moderation, so here is the DOI: 10.5840/aaptstudies2025105 Also, I don’t know if the dynamic Krishnan describes is unique to philosophy or academia. But you might think that the goods she describes ARE unique to philosophy (in a non-trivial way – though I guess these are both empirical issues).

    I’m a cis woman midway through the tenure track. I’ve learned and worked in 5 US philosophy departments. I’ve also never experience sexual harassment. And there have definitely been late nights with alcohol where it could have happened. But I’ve definitely encountered plenty of gendered interactions and those aren’t going away anytime soon. What to do except respect your colleagues less?

    I don’t think OP needs to “expect” harassment in the way she currently seems to need to expect it. My experience is that harassment isn’t systemic across the discipline (there are departments where it may be deeply embedded, though). It can occur. It might happen to you. It might happen to someone you are friends with.

    One thing to watch out for is how the grad student population shifts. Departments are small, and one or two creepy guys can wreck the vibe, even if no one ever does anything that would rise to the level of a formal complaint. But it’s hard to screen for creeps. (Also, my experience is that the creeps are less socially and academically secure within the department than the women they fixate on, which is a complicating factor.)

    You need to build a supportive network anyway. Even if everyone behaves perfectly!! So I think that is what I’d focus my attention on as a new student.

    Reply
  6. Anonymous

    Much like the other commentators, I will chime in that I have experienced gendered comments/people taking me less seriously because I’m a woman or because I work on issues which are considered more stereotypically “feminine”. But I have not experienced sexual harassment at my institution and in the time I have been at this institution (four years), I have not heard of any other student experiencing sexual harassment. That being said, I heard of dicey situations happening with a few current profs at my university before my time here. As far as I’m aware, my university handled those situations relatively well. I have basically never or maybe only once heard of current or ongoing instances of sexual harassment at other institutions. Most of what I hear about sexual harassment in philosophy is about the widely known, publicized, and notorious cases. This is all to say that my sense is that it happens, people should be aware of it and ask about their particular university, but it’s by no means widespread or something to be expected.

    Reply

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