The Model Minority Myth: Asian American Women and Reporting of Sexual Harassment

• In Event: Asian American Empowerment: Marginalization and Voice

Abstract

This paper evaluates factors affecting reporting patterns for sexual harassment among Asian Americans on college campuses. Under the model minority myth, Asian Americans are valorized whereas common challenges that they may face as a group are underconsidered. Current research regarding the ongoing problem of sexual harassment on college campuses is fundamental to the betterment of our higher education systems. Yet an overview of scholarship demonstrates that not enough research is conducted on sexual harassment targets by racial or ethnic group. This paper evaluates factors leading to sexual harassment (both dispositional and situational) of Asian American females, factors leading to reporting, and socialization during a key imprinting period for college and university students. Asian American females have long faced objectification and stereotypes that pit group members into a set of trite categories. Tentative findings of this study demonstrate that for Asian Americans in particular, the model minority stereotype may serve as a significant disadvantage or hindrance to due process and reporting of sexual harassment among group members. In the long run, recognizing factors that hinder reporting will bolster efforts to achieve equal protection and full democratic inclusion.

Author

• Loan K. Le, Institute for Good Government & Inclusion