ONLINE SEXUAL HARASSMENT SCALE FOR YOUNG ADULTS: DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF ITS FACTOR STRUCTURE
Main Article Content
Abstract
Online sexual harassment (OSH) among young people has received increasing attention as social and sexual interactions have become increasingly common in digital environments. However, research on this phenomenon in Vietnam remains constrained by the lack of measurement instruments appropriate for young adults. This study aimed to develop and validate an OSH scale for young adults. The study was conducted with 576 participants aged 18–25 years in Ho Chi Minh City. The results indicated that the 14-item scale demonstrated good reliability. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis supported a four-factor structure comprising online sexualized verbal harassment, unwanted online sexual attention, online sexual coercion, and non-consensual sharing of intimate content online. Second-order confirmatory factor analysis further supported the representation of these four dimensions by a higher-order general OSH construct. The findings provide initial evidence for the reliability and structural validity of a Vietnamese-language OSH scale, thereby contributing a measurement instrument for research on online sexual harassment among young adults in the Vietnamese context.
Keywords
Online sexual harassment, Young adults, Scale, Ho Chi Minh City
Article Details
References
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Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
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Kaiser, H. F., & Rice, J. (1974). Little Jiffy, Mark IV. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 34(1), 111–117. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447403400115
Mazer, D. B., & Percival, E. F. (1989). Ideology or experience? The relationships among perceptions, attitudes, and experiences of sexual harassment in university students. Sex Roles, 20(3), 135-147. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00287987
Madigan, S., Villani, V., Azzopardi, C., Laut, D., Smith, T., Temple, J. R., Browne, D., & Dimitropoulos, G. (2018). The prevalence of unwanted online sexual exposure and solicitation among youth: A meta-analysis. Journal of Adolescent Health, 63(2), 133–141. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.03.012
Martínez-Bacaicoa, J., Sorrel, M. A., & Gámez-Guadix, M. (2024). Development and validation of technology-facilitated sexual violence perpetration and victimization scales among adults. Assessment, 31(8), 1580–1597. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911241229575
McGlynn, C., & Rackley, E. (2017). Image-based sexual abuse. Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 37(3), 534–561. https://doi.org/10.1093/ojls/gqw033
Montiel, I., Carbonell, E., & Pereda, N. (2016). Multiple online victimization of Spanish adolescents: Results from a community sample. Child Abuse & Neglect, 52, 123–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2015.12.005
Nguyen Van Luot, Giang Thi Thanh Mai, Beazley, H., Nguyen Thi Anh Thu, Tran Ha Thu, Truong Quang Lam, & Nguyen Huy Hoang. (2025). The prevalence and factors associated with sexting among Vietnamese adolescents: A gender-specific analysis. International Journal of Mental Health, 54(2), 154–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207411.2024.2377843
Scarduzio, J. A., Sheff, S. E., & Smith, M. (2018). Coping and sexual harassment: How victims cope across multiple settings. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47, 327–340. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-017-1065-7
Schenk, S. (2008). Cyber-sexual harassment: The development of the Cyber-Sexual Experiences Questionnaire. McNair Scholars Journal, 12(1), 82–91.
Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., & Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: Tests of significance and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research, 8(2), 23–74.
Stark, S., Chernyshenko, O. S., Lancaster, A. R., Drasgow, F., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (2002). Toward standardized measurement of sexual harassment: Shortening the SEQ-DoD using item response theory. Military Psychology, 14(1), 49–72. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327876MP1401_03
Worsley, J., & Carter, G. (2022). The impact of technology-facilitated sexual violence: A literature review of qualitative research. In A. Powell, A. Flynn, & L. Sugiura (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of gendered violence and technology (pp. 261–280). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83734-1_13
Barak, A. (2005). Sexual harassment on the internet. Social Science Computer Review, 23(1), 77–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439304271540
Boateng, G. O., Neilands, T. B., Frongillo, E. A., Melgar-Quiñonez, H. R., & Young, S. L. (2018). Best practices for developing and validating scales for health, social, and behavioral research: A primer. Frontiers in Public Health, 6, Article 149. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2018.00149
Brown, C., & Hegarty, K. (2021). Development and validation of the TAR Scale: A measure of technology-facilitated abuse in relationships. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 3, Article 100059. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2021.100059
Buchanan, N., & Mahoney, A. (2022). Development of a scale measuring online sexual harassment: Examining gender differences and the emotional impact of sexual harassment victimization online. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 27(1), 63–81. https://doi.org/10.1111/lcrp.12197
Childnet International. (2017). Young people’s experiences of online sexual harassment: A cross-country report from Project deSHAME.
Clancy, E. M., Klettke, B., & Hallford, D. J. (2019). The dark side of sexting—Factors predicting the dissemination of sexts. Computers in Human Behavior, 92, 266–272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.11.023
Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V. (2014). From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. British Journal of Psychology, 105(3), 399–412. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12046
ECPAT, INTERPOL, & UNICEF. (2022). Disrupting Harm in Viet Nam: Evidence on online child sexual exploitation and abuse. Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children.
Fitzgerald, L. F., Gelfand, M. J., & Drasgow, F. (1995). Measuring sexual harassment: Theoretical and psychometric advances. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 17(4), 425–445. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15324834basp1704_2
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
Gámez-Guadix, M. (2018). Sexual harassment and the internet. In B. Warf (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of the internet (Vol. 3, pp. 770–772). SAGE Publications. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781473960367.n225
Gámez-Guadix, M., Almendros, C., Borrajo, E., & Calvete, E. (2015). Prevalence and association of sexting and online sexual victimization among Spanish adults. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 12(2), 145–154. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-015-0186-9
Gámez-Guadix, M., Mateos-Pérez, E., Wachs, S., Wright, M., Martínez, J., & Íncera, D. (2022). Assessing image-based sexual abuse: Measurement, prevalence, and temporal stability of sextortion and nonconsensual sexting (“revenge porn”) among adolescents. Journal of Adolescence, 94(5), 789–799. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12064
Guerra, C., Pinto-Cortez, C., Toro, E., Efthymiadou, E., & Quayle, E. (2021). Online sexual harassment and depression in Chilean adolescents: Variations based on gender and age of the offenders. Child Abuse & Neglect, 120, Article 105219. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105219
Henry, N., Gavey, N., & Johnson, K. (2023). Image-based sexual abuse as a means of coercive control: Victim-survivor experiences. Violence Against Women, 29(6–7), 1206–1226. https://doi.org/10.1177/10778012221114918
Howard, M. C. (2016). A review of exploratory factor analysis decisions and overview of current practices: What we are doing and how can we improve? International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 32(1), 51–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2015.1087664
Hu, L.-T., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Iroegbu, M., O’Brien, F., Muñoz, L. C., & Parsons, G. (2024). Investigating the psychological impact of cyber-sexual harassment. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 39(15–16), 3424–3445. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605241231615
Kaiser, H. F., & Rice, J. (1974). Little Jiffy, Mark IV. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 34(1), 111–117. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447403400115
Mazer, D. B., & Percival, E. F. (1989). Ideology or experience? The relationships among perceptions, attitudes, and experiences of sexual harassment in university students. Sex Roles, 20(3), 135-147. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00287987
Madigan, S., Villani, V., Azzopardi, C., Laut, D., Smith, T., Temple, J. R., Browne, D., & Dimitropoulos, G. (2018). The prevalence of unwanted online sexual exposure and solicitation among youth: A meta-analysis. Journal of Adolescent Health, 63(2), 133–141. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.03.012
Martínez-Bacaicoa, J., Sorrel, M. A., & Gámez-Guadix, M. (2024). Development and validation of technology-facilitated sexual violence perpetration and victimization scales among adults. Assessment, 31(8), 1580–1597. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911241229575
McGlynn, C., & Rackley, E. (2017). Image-based sexual abuse. Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 37(3), 534–561. https://doi.org/10.1093/ojls/gqw033
Montiel, I., Carbonell, E., & Pereda, N. (2016). Multiple online victimization of Spanish adolescents: Results from a community sample. Child Abuse & Neglect, 52, 123–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2015.12.005
Nguyen Van Luot, Giang Thi Thanh Mai, Beazley, H., Nguyen Thi Anh Thu, Tran Ha Thu, Truong Quang Lam, & Nguyen Huy Hoang. (2025). The prevalence and factors associated with sexting among Vietnamese adolescents: A gender-specific analysis. International Journal of Mental Health, 54(2), 154–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207411.2024.2377843
Scarduzio, J. A., Sheff, S. E., & Smith, M. (2018). Coping and sexual harassment: How victims cope across multiple settings. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47, 327–340. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-017-1065-7
Schenk, S. (2008). Cyber-sexual harassment: The development of the Cyber-Sexual Experiences Questionnaire. McNair Scholars Journal, 12(1), 82–91.
Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., & Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: Tests of significance and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research, 8(2), 23–74.
Stark, S., Chernyshenko, O. S., Lancaster, A. R., Drasgow, F., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (2002). Toward standardized measurement of sexual harassment: Shortening the SEQ-DoD using item response theory. Military Psychology, 14(1), 49–72. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327876MP1401_03
Worsley, J., & Carter, G. (2022). The impact of technology-facilitated sexual violence: A literature review of qualitative research. In A. Powell, A. Flynn, & L. Sugiura (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of gendered violence and technology (pp. 261–280). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83734-1_13