Abstract
This article presents research on the scale of the phenomenon of sexual violence against students at selected 33 universities across Poland, the mechanisms used to combat the problem and the awareness of students on the subject. The study focuses on the practical dimension of combating sexual violence against students in the Polish academic environment. It looks at the existence and functioning of both specialised bodies and the procedures used to help the victims and punish the perpetrators. Additionally, the paper describes how the diversity of available legal measures to address the problem by both helping the victims and holding perpetrators accountable creates the issue of the coexistence of two systems—criminal and intra-university. Presenting preliminary results of gathered opinions of universities’ officials regarding functioning of the bodies specialised in combating sexual violence shows not only the most dominant observations and conclusions the professionals have regarding the functions they hold at their home universities, but also main challenges that have to be considered in both creating sufficient policies in order to deal with sexual violence and conducting comprehensive research on said phenomenon.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Budziszewska, Magdalena. Soral, Wiktor. Świderska, Aleksandra. Witkowska, Marta and Hansen, Karolina. 2019. Równe traktowanie ze względu na płeć - raport z badania społeczności UW. Centrum badań nad uprzedzeniami.
Kwaśniewska, Agata, Winiewski, Mikołaj, Bulska, Dominika and Babińska, Maria. 2018. Doświadczenie molestowania wśród studentek i studentów. Analiza i zalecenia. Biuletyn Rzecznika Praw Obywatelskich. Zasada Równego Traktowania – prawo i praktyka. n. 25.
Klein, Renate. 2018. Sexual Violence on US College Campuses: History and Challenges. In Gender-Based Violence in University Communities. Policy, Prevention and Educational Initiatives, ed. Sundari Anitha and Ruth Lewis, 63–82. Bristol: Policy Press University of Bristol.
Sundari, Anitha, and Ruth Lewis. 2018. Introduction: Some Reflections in These Promising and Challenging Times. In Gender-Based Violence in University Communities. Policy, Prevention and Educational Initiatives, ed. Sundari Anitha and Ruth Lewis, 1–20. Bristol: Policy Press University of Bristol.
Sundaram, Vanita. 2018. A Continuum of Acceptability: Understanding Young People’s Views on Gender-Based Violence. In Gender-Based Violence in University Communities. Policy, Prevention and Educational Initiatives, ed. Sundari Anitha and Ruth Lewis, 23–39. Bristol: Policy Press University of Bristol.
Magaldi, Danielle, and Matthew Berler. 2018. Semi-structured Interviews. In Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences, ed. Virgil Zeigler-Hill and Todd Shackelford. Cham: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_857-1.
University of Warsaw. 2021. Guide to the Prevention of Sexual Harassment. Accessed 6 November 2023.
Act of 6 June 1997 – Criminal Code (Consolidated Version O.J. of 2022, Item 1138, 1726, 1855, 2339, 2600, of 2023, Item 289, 403, 818, 852).
Act of 20 July 2018 – The Law on Higher Education and Science (Consolidated Version O.J. of 2023, Item 742, 1088, 1234).
Act of 6 June 1997 – Code of Criminal Procedure (Consolidated Version O.J. of 2022, Item 1375, 1855, 2582, 2600, of 2023, Item 289, 535, 818, 1606, 1860).
Jarocka, Marika. 2021. Definicja zgwałcenia jako jabłko niezgody w polskim systemie prawnym. Studia Iuridica Toruniensia 28: 45–63.
Płatek, Monika. 2018. Zgwałcenie. Gdy termin nabiera nowej treści. Pozorny brak zmian i jego skutki. Archiwum Kryminologii 40: 263–325.
Judgement of the Court of Appeals in Krakow – II Criminal Division, 11 May 2018, II AKa 40/18.
Judgement of the Court of Appeals in Krakow – II Criminal Division, 14 September 2016, II AKa 99/16.
Decision of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 9 June 2021, V KK 165/21.
Judgement of the Court of Appeals in Gdansk – II Criminal Division, 9 February 2017, II AKa 294/16.
Resolution of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 19 May 1999, I KZP 17/99.
Decision of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 20 April 2016, III KK 489/15.
Decision of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 18 February 2014, II KK 19/14.
Decision of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 2 June 2015, V KK 36/15.
Judgement of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 29 September 2021, V KK 222/21.
Decision of the Supreme Court – Criminal Chamber, 18 December 2008, V KK 304/08.
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence.
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
Janusz-Pohl, Barbara. 2013. O modelu postępowania dyscyplinarnego w sprawach studenckich. Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny 2: 85–97.
Regulation of the Minister of Science and Higher Education of 28 September 2018 on the Detailed Procedure of Investigation and Disciplinary Proceedings in Student Cases, As Well As the Manner of Execution of Disciplinary Penalties and Their Obliteration (O.J. of 2018, Item 1882).
Regulation of the Minister of Science and Higher Education of 8 June 2022 on the Detailed Procedure of Mediation, Investigation and Disciplinary Proceedings in Cases of Disciplinary Responsibility of Academic Staff, As Well As the Manner of Execution of Disciplinary Penalties and Their Obliteration (O.J. of 2022, Item 1236).
Wielec, Marcin, Koincydencja postępowania karnego i dyscyplinarnego w kontekście przepisów ustawy Prawo o szkolnictwie wyższym. 2017. Białostockie Studia Prawnicze. https://doi.org/10.15290/bsp.2017.22.01.09.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Consortia
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Members of the Antigone Project., Gryf, D., Rosa, W. et al. Conducting Research on Combating Sexual Violence in Polish Academia: Social Contexts, Legal Notes, and Preliminary Results. Int J Semiot Law (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-024-10125-3
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-024-10125-3