Gender-based violence can affect children, young people and adults and can occur in diverse settings. Everyone deserves to have their personal boundaries respected. Actions which fall within this definition include those that result in physical, sexual and psychological harm of the recipient or the violation of their dignity and can include (but are not limited) the following gender-based violence offences:
- Physical, sexual and psychological violence (incl. rape and sexual assault, coercive control etc)
- Unwanted sexual or gender-based physical, verbal, written, digital conduct or threat which has the purpose or effect of violating the dignity, safety, or health of an individual.
- Bullying behaviour, harassment or conduct related to a protected characteristic with the purpose or effect to violate a person’s dignity likely to intimidate, harm, control or diminish another person, physically or mentally. This may include creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for a person within the personal, professional and public environment.
- Sexual bullying or harassment, for example:
- unwanted sexual comments
- using words that refer to a person’s sexuality as an insult
- using sexual words that make someone feel bad
- making sexual jokes or threats e.g., rape jokes or sexual innuendo
- gossiping about someone’s sex life verbally, written or through social media
- unwanted physical contact, such as brushing up against someone, groping, grabbing, pulling at clothing
- asking someone to send nudes or sending them unwanted sexual pictures
- showing someone sexual pictures or videos without their consent
- online harassment like inappropriate sexual or threatening comments on social media
- Sexual insults – for example, telling a sexist, homophobic or transphobic joke, cat calling, objectification, shouting sexual ‘compliments’ at someone. Sexist and homophobic behaviours will not be tolerated. They send the message that it is acceptable but can make people feel unsafe and / or threatened. If people think these behaviours are acceptable, it can lead to more dangerous behaviour. Sexual insults are also considered to be bullying and harassment.
- Sharing of intimate images or film
- Intimidation – implied threats or acts that cause fear of harm in another.
- Outing - the act of disclosing a person's sexual orientation or gender identity without that person's consent, or before they are ready to tell their own story. We take this to include disclosing information about those who engage in sex work.
- Stalking – repeated, unwanted, or obsessive attention, or any other course of conduct directed at a person causing them to fear for their safety or the safety of others. This could include:
- Following someone
- Hanging around nearby e.g., at their home or at work
- Turning up to someone’s house uninvited
- Learning someone’s routine to regularly bump into them
- Monitoring or watching them
- Sending unwanted gifts or messages
- Persistent calls or texts or online harassment
- Unwanted touching or kissing
- Relationship Abuse, Domestic Abuse and Coercive Control - The University recognises the vulnerability of individuals - and their dependants - reflected under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018; ground-breaking legislation that criminalises psychological domestic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner. This can include verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological abuse, coercive control or threats of actions that negatively impact upon a person and/or dependent(s):
- Sexual violence can also happen within relationships. People can feel coerced or threatened to perform sexual acts that they do not want to. This is forcing someone to participate in sex against their will and can happen in any relationship between people of any gender or sexual orientation. Threats can be obvious, or they can be subtler. Someone may agree to participate in a sexual act because they want to avoid their partner’s anger or prevent them sulking or threatening to end the relationship.
- Relationship abuse can include calling someone names, blaming them for abuse, threatening to share personal information, watching everything they do, checking phones / social media or threatening harm to them or someone / something they love.
- Child sexual abuse involves any sexual activity with a child under 16 years of age by an adult (someone over 18). It is most often carried out by a person who is well known to the child, often within the family or in another position of trust. Children and young people can also be abused through sexual exploitation.
- Sexual exploitation is where someone seeks or requires sexual activity in exchange for something a person needs, such as money, drugs / alcohol, protection, a place to stay, a sense of belonging. People can be groomed or persuaded into sexual activity and might not realise it is happening. The perpetrator usually has power over the person, perhaps due to their gender, age, strength, intelligence, money, or possessions. Perceived consent does not mean this is not sexual abuse. This can happen online or in person. Threats, intimidation, or violence can be used.
- Upskirting is the act of taking a photograph of underneath a person’s skirt without their consent, typically with the intention of viewing their genitals or buttocks. Upskirting is an offence. No-one is allowed to take a sexual picture of you by putting a camera up your skirt. Regardless of location, e.g., on public transport or in a busy club, it is against the law.
- Grooming – as defined by the NSPCC – is when someone builds a relationship, trust and emotional connection with a child or young person so that they can manipulate, exploit and abuse them. It is most often an adult grooming a child or young person. However, this can happen to adults too. One aspect of grooming is that people can be manipulated into thinking they are in a loving and consensual relationship. But when that person lies to you, or leads you to believe things about them that are not true, this is an abuse of power and trust.
- Commercial Sexual Exploitation – including selling sex, pornography, disclosing private sexual images without consent, so-called ‘revenge pornography’, sextortion and indecent images of children.
- Slavery, Trafficking and Exploitation - Human trafficking is defined in the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015as the recruitment, transportation, or transfer, harbouring or receiving or exchange or transfer of control of another person for the purposes of exploiting them. The arrangement and facilitation of these actions also constitutes an offence. This offence does not always require coercive means such as threats or intimidation to be present and it is irrelevant whether the victim ‘consented’ to any part of the action. It also does not require the victim to have been moved.
- Female genital mutilation (FGM) is when all or part of the external female genitals is removed. This is usually done for cultural reasons or beliefs, and often when females are young.
- Forced marriage is a marriage between two people where one, or both, do not consent to the marriage, and where pressure or abuse is used to force the person, usually the woman, to go through with the marriage. This is different to arranged marriages, which are a cultural practice that involves the couple consenting to their marriage being arranged for them.
- Dowry related violence including expectations upon the bride and her family to provide property, gifts, money or personal demands.
- So-called Honour-based crimes involve physical, emotional, psychological, financial and sexual abuse, including murder, committed by perpetrators seeking to defend the reputation of their family or community.
- Historical or non-recent sexual offences: The significant passage of time does not prevent the effective prosecution of sexual offences and charges.
- Violence of Impact - Within the academic environment, it is common for academic staff to seek to actively build impact and public engagement in to their research agendas, to disseminate research findings and engage discussion. People may receive abuse via, and because of these platforms. This may be referred to as Violence of impact. Where there are threats upon any member of the University community, the University works with statutory agencies to protect them against such acts as set out above in the course of their work, whether occurring in public or private life, or within the physical or digital environment.