SynthesisBMJ open2021
Measurement and prevalence of sexual harassment in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Operationalizing Street Harassment Using Survey Instruments: A Systematic Review of Measuring Harassment in Public Spaces Using Surveys.Trauma, violence & abuse · 2024Pooled it
- Invasion of privacy or structural violence? Harassment against women in public transport environments: A systematic review.PloS one · 2024Pooled it
- Sexual Harassment in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Qualitative Systematic Review.Trauma, violence & abuse · 2023Pooled it
- Systematic Review of Policies and Interventions to Prevent Sexual Harassment in the Workplace in Order to Prevent Depression.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- A measurement tool to capture sexual harassment among women in Tanzania: results from cognitive testing.Global health action · 2026Article
- Bullying and sexual harassment of medical and nursing students, in relation to stress, burnout and intention to dropout.International journal of medical education · 2026Article
- Sexual misconduct among high school students in Vietnam.Child protection and practice · 2025Article
- Understanding non-partner sexual violence perpetration in young Tanzanian men: a cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Education and training interventions for healthcare workers to prevent sexual harassment.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2025Article
- Violence against women and girls research: Leveraging gains across disciplines.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Rapid surveys on violence against women in crisis contexts: decision-making guidance based on the UN Women Rapid Gender Assessment surveys on violence against women during COVID-19.The Lancet. Global health · 2024Review
- Association between sexual violence and depression is mediated by perceived social support among female university students in the kingdom of Eswatini.BMC public health · 2024Article
- An Increased Need to Identify Protective Factors for Sexual Assault.Iranian journal of psychiatry · 2024Article
- Prevalence and predictors of workplace sexual harassment of nurses in the Central Region of Ghana: a cross-sectional online survey.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Technology-Facilitated Sexual Violence and Abuse in Low and Middle-Income Countries: A Scoping Review.Trauma, violence & abuse · 2024Article
- Assessing Workplace Violence: Methodological Considerations.La Medicina del lavoro · 2024Article
- Article
- Sexual Harassment at Work: Scoping Review of Reviews.Psychology research and behavior management · 2024Article
- Linkages between maternal experience of intimate partner violence and child nutrition outcomes: A rapid evidence assessment.PloS one · 2024Article
- Dealing With Rape Cases in Ghana: The Law, the Victim and the Offender.Sexual offending (Trier, Germany) · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesWe synthesise evidence on sexual harassment from studies in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) to estimate its prevalence and conduct a meta-analysis of the association between sexual harassment and depressive symptoms.
methodsWe searched eight databases. We included peer-reviewed studies published in English from 1990 until April 2020 if they measured sexual harassment prevalence in LMICs, included female or male participants aged 14 and over and conceptualised sexual harassment as an independent or dependant variable. We appraised the quality of evidence, used a narrative syntheses approach to synthesise data and conducted a random effects meta-analysis.
resultsFrom 49 included studies, 38 focused on workplaces and educational institutions and 11 on public places. Many studies used an unclear definition of sexual harassment and did not deploy a validated measurement tool. Studies either used a direct question or a series of behavioural questions to elicit information on acts considered offensive or defined as sexual harassment. Prevalence was higher in educational institutions than in workplaces although there was high heterogeneity in prevalence estimates across studies with no international comparability. This posed a challenge for calculating an overall estimate or measuring a range. Our meta-analysis showed some evidence of an association between sexual harassment and depressive symptoms (OR: 1.75; 95% CI: 1.11 to 2.76; p=0.016) although there were only three studies with a high risk of bias.
conclusionTo our knowledge, this is the first systematic review to assess measurement approaches and estimate the prevalence of sexual harassment across settings in LMICs. We also contribute a pooled estimate of the association between sexual harassment and depressive symptoms in LMICs. There is limited definitional clarity, and rigorously designed prevalence studies that use validated measures for sexual harassment in LMICs. Improved measurement will enable us to obtain more accurate prevalence estimates across different settings to design effective interventions and policies.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.