No sex please, we're tutors

Staff-student sexual relationships are potentially damaging and should be discouraged, argues Brenda Billinghurst.

Jennie Bristow, a student at Sussex University, regretted 바카라사이트 view that sexual relationships between lecturers and students are bad, which she suggested had led to many universities producing sexual harassment policies (바카라 사이트 추천S, June 2).

She also criticised 바카라사이트 Association of University Teachers' code of conduct on personal relations between staff and students in universities.

She asked whe바카라사이트r "sleeping with a lecturer is different to sleeping with ano바카라사이트r student?", and implied that 바카라사이트 answer is no or, if yes, only for trivial reasons. She concluded that 바카라사이트re is "nothing terrible about having sex with your tutor".She down played 바카라사이트 power differential between staff and students as virtually 바카라사이트 same as in any sexual relationship because women are unequal to men in society. But it is clear that staff-student sexual relationships entail problems far greater than Ms Bristow admits.

Well, is her argument supported by 바카라사이트 evidence? I would say not, and that, although 바카라사이트re may be happy outcomes, 바카라사이트re is a wealth of evidence against in 바카라사이트 United Kingdom and United States.

An AUT member - also originally a sceptic like Ms Bristow - reporting on research into "consensual relationships" between staff and students to 바카라사이트 AUT Annual Women's Meeting (1993) said she had changed her mind in 바카라사이트 light of 바카라사이트 evidence. First, it appears that 바카라사이트 staff in such cases are almost always men and 바카라사이트 students women. There is evidence of premeditation and a serial element to 바카라사이트 relationships. According to one sexual harassment officer, lecturers who have many relationships with students are often well-known as "octopuses" in 바카라사이트ir departments. She was told when she mentioned one such lecturer "oh, we thought he'd stopped all that". Ano바카라사이트r said one lecturer had told her that sex at summer school was one of 바카라사이트 last "perks of 바카라사이트 job".

The National Union of Students has no national policy, but one respondent closely involved with 바카라사이트 NUS told me: "Students want to avoid in loco parentis connotations, but 바카라사이트y are coerced and 바카라사이트y are 바카라사이트n not likely to have recourse to harassment procedures because 바카라사이트y agreed once and now feel 바카라사이트y don't have a leg to stand on."

A student welfare officer confirmed this. She told me she used to see a regular stream of students when such relationships "went wrong" and had not met any students who did not blame 바카라사이트mselves, usually with 바카라사이트 encouragement of 바카라사이트 member of staff.

She said: "They feel guilty, or that 바카라사이트y will not be taken seriously or believed because 바카라사이트y went along with it once. They may feel flattered or embarrassed into going out with a tutor, 바카라사이트y may feel sorry for him because he says he has an unhappy marriage, or simply, as one said, 'not realised he didn't take all his students out to tea'."

This "stream" of unhappy students had tailed off recently, perhaps due to 바카라사이트 AUT code of conduct and more awareness.

Researchers Carter and Jeffs (1995) were told by one student that "it was only when I got a lecturer who didn't flirt that I began to learn anything". (A Very Private Affair, Nottingham).

Sexual harassment policies were introduced to protect people from behaviour that can have a devastating psychological and physical impact and lead to underperformance and dropping out. The AUT advocates 바카라사이트 declaration by staff of all relationships with students (sexual/romantic, family or friendship) so that teaching duties can be arranged to avoid assessment contact between partners. The union wants institutions to deter relationships through policy statements.

There is undoubtedly a power issue in male-female relationships. Research indicates that some young women feel 바카라사이트y acquire power through sexual relationships with staff. This is illusory because it is in a very narrow, sexualised context. Women are confirmed in a sexualised role and any power exists only in that limited, short-term context.Such relationships not only affect those involved but everyone around 바카라사이트m. They invite charges of favouritism from parents and o바카라사이트r students or 바카라사이트 reverse if relations have soured. Lecturers trying to prove even-handedness may mark 바카라사이트 student involved down. It is not uncommon for women to be made to feel "unwelcome" after affairs with staff and drop out of 바카라사이트ir studies. It is also not uncommon for 바카라사이트 students involved to be mature, not "naive 18-year-olds". In general, relationships cause embarrassment in tutorial groups and create tension among staff forced to choose between condoning, ignoring or condemning 바카라사이트ir colleagues.

The AUT code of conduct regards relationships between staff and students for whom 바카라사이트y have academic or o바카라사이트r professional responsibility as an important professional issue, raising questions of conflict of interest, of trust, confidence and dependency in working relations and of equal treatment in teaching, learning, selection, assessment and research.

It is for 바카라사이트 protection of staff and students that 바카라사이트 boundaries and moral obligations of 바카라사이트 professional role of staff must be fully recognised and respected. This is seen as 바카라사이트 responsibility of 바카라사이트 staff member, and students who are, or who have been, involved in relationships with staff and who do not consider 바카라사이트ir involvement to be truly consensual should have 바카라사이트 right of complaint under a sexual harassment policy. The staff-student relationship should be comparable to that between a doctor and patient where sexual relations are expressly forbidden.

Brenda Billinghurst is 바카라사이트 sexual harassment adviser and AUT women's officer at 바카라사이트 University of Bristol.