Quando a hierarquia de gênero produz assédio: vivências estudantis na graduação

Abstract

This study investigated the intersection between gender roles and moral harassment based on students’ reports from a federal university in northern Brazil. It was grounded in the understanding that gender-based violence is frequently expressed through moral and sexual harassment, with profound effects on the mental health of women and individuals who do not conform to the binary logic of gender. The research adopted a qualitative approach and was developed along two interconnected axes. In Axis 1, 367 questionnaires completed by undergraduate women and non- binary students were analyzed using the software Iramuteq through Descending Hierarchical Classification, which resulted in five thematic classes: 1. permanence in undergraduate studies and institutional barriers; 2. vulnerabilities in physical and mental health; 3. weaknesses and potentialities of university infrastructure; 4. personal connection and identification with the university environment; 5. gender, power, and harassment in university relations. In Axis 2, 26 interviews with undergraduate students who reported gender-based violence were examined, leading to four classes:1. harassment and power hierarchies; 2. well-being and psychological support; 3. fear and female vulnerability in daily university life; 4. balancing personal life and undergraduate studies in maintaining mental health. The results show that permanence in university is shaped by structural precariousness, psychological distress, and gender inequalities, in which harassment is intertwined with hierarchical positions and male domination. It is concluded that ensuring dignified university retention requires specific policies for preventing and confronting harassment, strengthening psychological support networks, and reviewing institutional practices that naturalize gender inequality within the university.