A Movement Or a Moment?: the Impact of #Metoo Among College Students

Home , Me Too movement, Me Too movement (India)

A Movement or a Moment?: The Impact of #MeToo Among College Students

A thesis presented to

the faculty of

the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University

In partial fulfillment

of the requirements for the degree

Master of Arts

Alexandra L. Monaco

May 2020

This thesis titled

A Movement or a Moment?: The Impact of #MeToo Among College Students

ALEXANDRA L. MONACO

has been approved for

the Department of Sociology and Anthropology

and the College of Arts and Sciences by

Thomas Vander Ven

Professor of Sociology

Florenz Plassmann

Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3

Abstract

MONACO, ALEXANDRA M, M.A., May 2020, Sociology

A Movement or a Moment?: The Impact of #MeToo Among College Students

Director of Thesis: Thomas Vander Ven

In this study, I investigate the ways in which college students have interacted with the #MeToo campaign and how those interactions have shaped their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization. The findings show that those that support #MeToo do so because the campaign builds a community of support for the survivor using the hashtag, it empowers survivors, and encourages activism. Those that oppose the campaign do so because it negatively affected the interactions that different gender identities have with one another. Those in opposition of the campaign also questioned the moral legitimacy of the campaign and its followers, citing questionable motives for using the hashtag and detraction from “real” victims. These findings contribute to a necessary and lacking empirical and foundational understanding of #MeToo. The study concludes with an in- depth discussion of the findings, limitations, and future directions.

Dedication

To my parents.

Thank you for all that you do and all that you are.

I am because of you.

Acknowledgments

First, I would like to thank my family. To my parents Michael and Kelly Monaco and sister, Lyndsay Monaco, for encouraging my intellectual curiosity and supporting me in every decision I’ve made. I would also like to thank my significant other, Greg

Jenkins, for saying “yes” to every time I’ve asked “hey, can I read this to you?” To the members of my cohort: thank you for pulling me into your areas of interest and making me a better, more well-rounded sociologist and researcher. Special thanks to Joy, Katie, and Megan, who reignited my passion for food, acted as my sounding board in the crazy world of research, and aided in the development of my first teaching lessons and lectures.

To the women of 33G thank you for your constant love, support, encouragement, and celebration of the “little victories.”

This project would not have been possible without the endless support of my committee. To Dr. Mattley, thank you for constantly pointing me towards the women who came before us and reminding me of their efforts. To Dr. Scanlan, I fell in love with sociology because of a class I took with you during my first semester of college. Thank you for igniting this drive and passion within me. To Dr. Vander Ven, thank you for supporting me in every decision I’ve made. From making the decision to apply to this program, conduct a master’s thesis project, teach my first course, and everything in between, you’ve been a constant source of encouragement and positivity.

To my incredible family, friends, and committee members, I simply cannot thank you enough. You have all helped me grow as an individual and have played a critical role in the development of this thesis. Thank you. 6

Table of Contents Page

Abstract ...... 3 Dedication ...... 4 Acknowledgments...... 5 Introduction ...... 7 Literature Review...... 12 Social Movements ...... 12 Social Media ...... 16 Rape Culture and Rape Myth ...... 18 Victim Blaming ...... 21 Theoretical Framework ...... 23 Methods, Data, and Sample ...... 26 Findings and Discussion ...... 31 Descriptive Analysis of Student Exposure to and Interaction with #MeToo ...... 31 Competing Definitions of the #MeToo Campaign: An analysis of open-ended responses ...... 33 Supporting #MeToo ...... 34 Community Building...... 34 Empowering Survivors...... 37 Encouraging Activism...... 40 Opposing #MeToo ...... 43 Gender Politics ...... 43 Questioning Moral Legitimacy ...... 47 Conclusion ...... 50 References ...... 53

Introduction

In recent years, there has been an increased awareness and effort to understand sexual violence. Throughout the social sciences, researchers have strived to better understand who becomes a victim of sexual violence, who the perpetrators are, and how the perpetrators choose their victims. The #MeToo Movement has added to this conversation by lifting the veil of secrecy surrounding the topic of sexual victimization in some contexts. The movement has gained national and global attention in response to scandals in Hollywood and Washington, D.C., and has taken the world by storm on social media platforms. On Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, users have used the hashtag

“#MeToo” to signify that they have experienced sexual violence or to show their support for survivors of sexual violence. Although #MeToo has normalized the conversation of sexual violence to a certain extent, some argue that #MeToo has created a divisive conversation fueled by political affiliation. Since the debate around the meaning and value of the movement is contested terrain, it has been difficult to determine the effectiveness and meaning of this social media driven social movement. Thus, the central objective of this exploratory research is to identify the ways in which the #MeToo

Movement has come to affect college students’ perceptions of sexual violence and victimization.

Tarana Burke founded the #MeToo organization in 2006. As the organization’s website states, “our vision from the beginning was to address both the dearth in resources for survivors of sexual violence and to build a community of advocates, driven by survivors, who will be at the forefront of creating solutions to interrupt sexual violence in 8 their communities” (Me Too Movement, 2018). The fact that the #MeToo organization was built to be survivor driven is what makes #MeToo so unique.

Since 2006, there have been several events that have shifted the way that contemporary American culture perceives and defines what #MeToo represents. This shift of perception began in 2017, when several actresses and Hollywood film professionals stepped forward with sexual assault allegations against film producer

Harvey Weinstein. In response to the publication of these stories, actress Alyssa Milano took to the social media site Twitter, challenging her “followers” with the following tweet: “If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem” (Schmidt, 2017).

Overnight, “more than 200,000 #MeToo tweets were published by Twitter’s count” and

“nearly 800,000 people said to be ‘talking about this’” on Facebook (Schmidt, 2017).

Whether she knew it or not, Alyssa Milano changed the public face and understanding of

#MeToo. By posting this message, she shifted the attention of #MeToo from the allocation of resources to underdeveloped cities (the goal of Tarana Burke’s original organization) to a rallying cry for people affected by sexual violence. The hashtag came to represent the magnitude of sexual violence and its pervasiveness regardless of age, sex, gender identity, race or ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.

Since the hashtag captured the imagination of social media users in 2017, it has been a staple in shedding light on the consequences of sexual violence. For example, the hashtag was widely cited in response to the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings regarding Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s sexual assault allegations against then Supreme 9

Court nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh. When Dr. Christine Blasey Ford stepped forward with sexual assault allegations against the nominee, many people questioned why she had waited roughly 30 years to report her victimization. As with the response to

Milano’s “tweet,” participants of #MeToo took to social media to tell their stories and give reasons as to why people wait to report their victimization. A sub-campaign,

“#WhyIDidn’tReport” was thus created. #MeToo content on social media has proven to be a powerful and responsive conversation. What is less clear, however, is how impactful this conversation has become.

With the advent and popularity of social media, spreading awareness of issues like sexual violence has become significantly easier. Campaigns and advocacy organizations have been able to reach a larger and more diverse audience by simply creating and posting on a Facebook or Twitter account. Social media has become a platform for individuals to interact with each other and the world around them with ease, removing traditional temporal and geographic challenges.

Social media has not only created a world where people can meet, interact, share ideas, and maintain relationships, social media websites have also created a platform where social movements can be created and grown. Another such example is the Black

Lives Matter Movement (BLM) (see Edrington & Lee, 2018). Since their inception, BLM has maintained its online presence, but has shifted away from using social media as its primary source of activism. Instead, BLM continues to use social media as a tool to keep members and followers informed, while organizing “chapters” on college campuses and within communities across the United States (Black Lives Matter, 2019). It is thus clear 10 that creating a social movement online through social media sites like Twitter and

Facebook is entirely possible. What is currently unclear, however, is the magnitude and longevity of social media driven social movements as well as how these movements are separated from user-generated content regarding the movement.

The impact of this conversation is incredibly important in developing a better understanding of social media and social movements. #MeToo is unique in the fact that it utilizes social media as its primary platform rather than a tool of reinforcement and outreach. Thus, understanding the influence of #MeToo can help social media scholars better understand how social media content is created, utilized, and shared among users.

It can also answer questions about how much social media conversations effect life offline. For instance, this conversation has emerged in other media as well, such as television news and commentary, creating a public conversation about sexual violence.

This survivor driven conversation can allow survivor advocates and social workers to see the perspective of survivors, in the survivor’s own words. This insight is invaluable in assessing treatment and advocacy programs. Finally, knowing the demographic of social media users (primarily the millennial and generation Z generations) it is important to ask how younger generations are being affected by this conversation (Rosen, 2010; Twenge,

2017). Undoubtedly, developing an understanding of the impression of #MeToo is important in how society moves forward with social movements, social media, and survivor advocacy research and application.

Since #MeToo is still developing and responding to world events, there are a number of questions that could be asked about the hashtag and its effects in the “real 11 world.” The present study seeks to answer the following research question: how has

#MeToo impacted college students and their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization as a result of their interactions with #MeToo.

Literature Review

#MeToo is a complex phenomenon that is difficult to unpack and study. This is, in part, due to the fact that #MeToo is organizing and responding to events that are taking place currently. This study is unique in the fact that it is analyzing a social phenomenon that is taking place in the present, rather than after the movement has ended its efforts.

Thus, it is difficult to understand the impact and longevity of this collective action.

Instead, the present study seeks to identify a baseline understanding of #MeToo through analyzing four different types of literature: social movements, social media, rape culture, and victim blaming. Together, these four subtopics can help portray a more detailed picture of what type of collectivity #MeToo is, and how it can come to impact the world’s understanding of sexual violence and victimization.

Social Movements

In order to fully understand the scope and potential of #MeToo, an important decision regarding the status as a social movement must be made. In the wake of the

Kavanaugh and Weinstein events, many scholars have been left wondering if #MeToo is a movement or just another advocacy moment in history (Larabee, 2018). Because this campaign is social media driven, the distinction between social movement, social movement organization, interest group and other social movement related collectivities is less clear. To make this delineation, it is imperative that one understands what a social movement is and what it looks like.

To help develop an understanding of what social movements are, Stewart, Smith, and Denton named six criteria that must be met in order for a collectivity to be considered 13 a social movement. According to their book, collectivities must be at least minimally organized, noninstitutionalized, large in scope, promote or oppose changes in societal norms and values, encounter opposition in a moral struggle, and rely primarily on persuasion to bring about or resist change (Stewart et al., 2012). Importantly, these authors acknowledge that, often, there is minimal organization or structure to social movements. Typically, social movements are not like most other organizations that rely on a bureaucratic or hierarchical organizational structure. Similar to Steward, Smith, and

Denton, Little and McGivern define social movements as “purposeful, organized groups striving to work toward a common social goal” (Little, McGivern, 2012). A final definition of social movements might be that they are “involved in conflictual relations with clearly identified opponents; are linked by dense informal networks; [and they] share a distinct collective identity" (Christiansen, 2017).

Based on these definitions and criteria, it can be difficult to understand where

#MeToo fits. The present study makes the argument that #MeToo, as it operates currently, cannot be considered a social movement, as described by the definitions provided above. While the original organization was spearheaded by founder Tarana

Burke, the hashtag and the way that the hashtag is being discussed on social media is a result of Alyssa Milano’s original call to action. While “leadership” and organization are not the most important things in a social movement, having two separate spokespeople has made following the hashtag difficult.

Similarly, the intent of the organization founded by Burke differs vastly from the intent of the post made by Alyssa Milano. As noted above, the Me Too Movement 14 organization was created to provide sexual violence resources and information to black women in cities that lacked such resources. Alyssa Milano’s social media post was intended to show the prevalence of sexual violence and shed light on the number of people affected by it. While both are noble causes, the agenda of the campaign is unclear, which has left scholars and followers of the campaign a bit unclear on the aims of this new, combined effort.

Additionally, while the group has had “street events” (e.g., rallies and protests) in response to things like President Trump’s leaked “grab her by the pussy” remarks and

Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s supreme court nomination, they have yet to attempt persuasion as a method to promote or oppose change. Those protests are important and show that

#MeToo has activism on the ground and offline, but it currently lacks a target person, legislation, or organization that it would like to see changed.

Thus, while the collectivity has a far reach and diverse following, it lacks some of the fundamental elements to be considered a social movement: clearly defined goals and targets, organization, and cohesion. Instead, #MeToo should be considered a campaign.

According to Staggenborg and Lecomte, campaigns can be understood as “temporally bounded and strategically linked series of events and interactions directed at common goals” (164; Staggenborg & Lecomte, 2009). The authors discuss the influence of

Charles Tilly in contemporary understandings of campaigns. Tilly (2004) sees such collectivities as a sort of stepping-stone to the social movement. He argues that, unlike social movements, campaigns can succeed or fail at their intended goal (Tilly, 2004).

Social movements, on the other hand, are too vast to accomplish such a finite and simple 15 task. Thus, Staggenborg and Lecomte make the claim that movement campaigns, such as

#MeToo, are “displays of unity aimed at demonstrating to authorities that the claims of activists are important to large numbers of people” (164, 2009). Finally, the authors discuss that

“movement campaigns can have both positive and negative effects, as well

as short- and long-term outcomes…Even when they fail to achieve policy

goals, collective campaings can aid future mobilizations by building

movement community ties and organizations, providing leaders, creating

new coalitions, and introducing new issues, frames, and forms of action

that can be used in subsequent campaings” (166).

Thus, it seems as though #MeToo can be better described and understood as a social movement campaign rather than a social movement. While still an effective collectivity, #MeToo has yet to exhibit the organizational characteristics of a social movement but has aided in other such hashtag collective efforts like #TimesUp and

#WhyIDidn’tReport. #MeToo has also helped raise awareness of an issue that has been seldom discussed in the public light, but has yet to enact any public policy or discernible social change. Finally, #MeToo has had both positive and negative consequences—some see the campaign as an empowering campaign aimed at raising awareness and activism for sexual violence and survivor advocacy while some see the campaign as a tool used to seek revenge or create a false narrative used to demonize men. While it is impossible to tell how this campaign will continue to grow and adapt, #MeToo should be discussed 16 within the frame of a social movement campaign in order to understand its impact in today’s conversation of sexual violence and victimization.

Social Media

Undoubtedly, social media has become an important force in modern society.

More so than ever before, people are getting their news stories and information from social media. In a study conducted by the PEW Research Center, “more than half of U.S adults get news from social media often or sometimes (55%)” and “about three-in-ten

Americans now get news on social media often (28%)” (Pew Reseach Center, 2019)

Although this change in information technology can be seen as a positive development, it leads one to ask how this information is being created, shared, and understood.

Understanding how social media impacts knowledge is important, especially when studying the influence that a social media driven campaign might have on its followers

(Tufecki, 2017).

In a study conducted by Cox, 35 millennial college students were interviewed about their social media use and how they had interacted with the Black Lives Matter

Movement. The findings of the study suggest that these students used social media sites as their primary information sources. The author notes that “this speaks to the nature of social media as informational sources in a similar manner as more traditional media— places where individuals consume information that is then absorbed into their knowledge base as subjective or objective fact—which then informs opinions and ideology” (Cox,

2017). 17

There are several issues with social media acting as a source of objective fact.

First, as Cox and others (Cox, 2017; Gillani et al., 2018; Vaidhyanathan, 2018) have noted, although social media sites are largely public entities, the providers often filter the posts that users see. This is called an “echo chamber,” where the user is constantly seeing posts that are similar to their own, thus reinforcing opinions and beliefs that they already have. This is the case with a user’s friends list, hashtags they see, and the advertisements that are shown to them. Perhaps the same is true with #MeToo. Only certain people are seeing the messages portrayed through this campaign. Although the movement organization does have a Twitter account, it is not very active, compared to most other users. Thus, the popularity of the hashtag has been created by users and followers of the hashtag and campaign—not necessarily the campaign itself. This is an important distinction because it sheds light on these “echo chambers” and how this campaign has gained popularity and messaging.

Second, the vast majority of content that users do interact with is user-generated content (Crowdtap, 2014). Further, “millennials spend roughly 18 hours with different types of media per day” (Crowdtap, 2014). Interestingly, however, of those 18 hours, millennials spend most of their time interacting with user-generated content. This means that the majority of the content containing #MeToo is derived from users. Although the social movement organization has an account, the majority of the conversation does not take place there. As previously mentioned, the conversation takes place within and among peers on social media. This interesting find is monumental in understanding how

#MeToo is finding its way to users, how they are interacting with it, and how the 18 movement is influencing perceptions of sexual violence and victimization in the “real world.”

One of the things that makes #MeToo unique is that is a social media driven campaign. The obvious advantage to this is that social media allow information to be spread more quickly and easily than ever before. But, as we have seen, social media has a way of skewing the information through echo chambers and misleading user generated content. Black Lives Matter was similar in their inception on social media, but as discussed above, the movement has since shifted their online presence from the driving force behind their movement to a method of communication with their followers. The

#MeToo hashtag, on the other hand, has maintained its heavy social media presence and has continued to be used as the driving force behind the campaign’s communication and action.

Rape Culture and Rape Myth

The terms rape culture and rape myth have a long history. Beginning with the feminist movement in the late twentieth century, “feminists and other activists brought the prevalence of rape and its damaging influence into the public eye and sought justice for rape survivors” (McIntosh, 2019). From this effort, the term rape culture was born.

This phrase has come to mean “the social environment in any culture or subculture in which rape is normalized to some degree due to broad attitudes on sexuality and gender”

(McIntosh, 2019). It is important to note that here, “normalized” is referring to the downplay of crime, trauma and consequences associated with rape and sexual violence.

This normalization happens through the language used to describe these incidents (e.g., 19

“that final exam raped me, it was so difficult”) media representation of rape, and one’s social network (including online).

A rape myth, however, is defined as “generalized beliefs about victims, perpetrators, or sexual assault incidents that either suggest that a sexual assault did not occur or trivialize the incident” (Hayes-Smith & Levett, 2010). Although there are discreet differences between rape myths and rape culture, they are often intertwined in society.

There are several ways in which the concept of rape culture and rape myths are perpetuated on college campuses, however, the presence of sports teams, fraternities, and cultural diversity enhance this perpetuation. While contemporary sociologists and researchers, more generally, understand that there are no exclusive gender roles when discussing sexual violence, according to Hayes et al., rape culture seems to be at least moderately associated with male peer support. Male peer support is similar to the idea of an echo chamber—“men (especially college men) tend to spend time with other men who support their views” (Hayes et al., 2016). Thus, just like with the echo chambers on social media, this phenomenon only helps to reinforce the ideas of rape culture and rape myth

(if men already place value in these concepts). This is especially true with campus organizations like fraternities (Giraldi & Monk-Turner, 2017). These organizations are commonly known to encourage the objectification of women and praising any man who has engaged in sexual activities with women. Similarly, Giraldi and Monk-Turner state that “rape culture manifests within fraternity norms and values through actions such as disrespecting women when in group settings, exercising dominating control over women 20 who attend their parties, and engaging in sexual assault either individually or as a group”

(Giraldi & Monk-Turner, 2017). But, this perpetuation does not stop here. It is further intertwined in the college atmosphere beyond the scope of campus organizations.

The silence surrounding sexual violence on college campuses leaves a veil of secrecy for college students. This makes it difficult for victims and survivors to acknowledge that their victimization was wrong or that it was sexual assault at all. This silence is largely impacted by the ambiguity of what “consent” is and is not, as well as the programming that schools provide for their students to gain a better understanding of these concepts. Giraldi and Monk-Turner provide the explanation that, often, the programming that schools offer place immense pressure on the victims of sexual violence. The authors state that “assuming responsibility for self-protection from rape and sexual assault places accountability on the victim. If a sexual assault occurs, then it becomes the woman’s fault for not effectively protecting herself from ‘natural’ male behaviors” (Giraldi & Monk-Turner, 2017). This idea of placing the responsibility of an assault on the victim, or victim blaming, is another important component in understanding sexual violence. Importantly, the acceptance of rape culture and rape myths extend beyond college campuses, as well. While the present study seeks to uncover the impact of #MeToo on college campuses, it is important to recognize that victim blaming, rape culture, and rape myth affect the larger society in ways that are not considered throughout this study. 21

Victim Blaming

Victim blaming is when one places the blame of the assault on the victim, rather than the perpetrator. While victim blaming is a simple concept, there are several complex components to victim blaming and the consequences associated with it. As Dunn states

“… people who are perceived as responsible in any way for their own victimization are not readily designated or treated as victims…if we think that a person must take some of the blame for what happened to him or her, we do not feel quite sympathetic toward the person as we might otherwise” (Dunn, 2010). This has obvious consequences for victims and survivors of sexual violence. For a set of crimes that is already underreported, victim blaming makes it even harder for victims and survivors of sexual violence to step forward. There are several ways in which one can be victim blamed—by judging victims

(neglecting to assign the label “victim” to people affected by sexual violence, as they lack some level of blamelessness) and victimism (painting an image of victimization that is inconsistent with women’s agency and sexuality) (Dunn, 2010).

These two forms of victim blaming take many shapes in contemporary society.

Often, when a victim steps forward with sexual assault allegations, many people are quick to ask questions like “how much alcohol did you consume?” or “what were you wearing?” Victims and survivors of sexual violence report receiving a negative response when reporting their victimization 75-83% of the time, depending on the study. “These responses were negative in that they often placed more responsibility on the victim instead of the perpetrator” (Fisher et al., 2003). The consequences of questions like these 22 are immense—especially on a college campus where students have a limited number of resources available to them.

By removing the veil of silence surrounding sexual violence and providing a victim centered approach to sexual violence education, #MeToo has provided a potentially safer environment for victims and survivors. The concepts of victim blaming, rape culture and rape myths, social media, and sexual violence will be explored throughout this paper to help better understand #MeToo and the effect that it has had on perceptions of sexual violence and victimization.

Theoretical Framework

To fully understand the complexities of #MeToo, the present study employs a symbolic interactionist theoretical perspective. Symbolic interactionism offers the unique opportunity to systematically gather and analyze data regarding the qualitative experiences of those that interact with #MeToo. Importantly, the symbolic interactionist approach allows social science researchers to gain understanding through the individual and the meanings the individual assigns to everyday objects and events. This theoretical perspective allows the researcher to begin with an exploratory research question on contemporary topics, as the current study demonstrates.

According to Ritzer and Stepnisky, symbolic interactionism is defined as “the school of sociology that, following Mead, focuses on symbolic interaction, the distinctive human ability to relate to one another not only through gestures but also through significant symbols” (151; Ritzer and Stepnisky, 2019). Further, there are five central tenants to symbolic interactionism: social interaction, thinking, definition, the present, and people who are actively engaged (Charon, 2007; Rafferty, 2011). Although several theorists contributed to the current understanding of symbolic interactionism, most relevant to this study are the works of George Herbert Mead and Herbert Blumer.

In many ways, Mead was the pioneer of symbolic interactionism. Focusing on individual acts, gestures, and interactions, he was instrumental to this theoretical perspective. Most important to this study is his concept of significant symbols.

Significant symbols are those that “arouse in the person expressing them the same kind of response (it need not be identical) they are designated to elicit from those to whom they 24 are addressed” (62; Ritzer and Stepnisky, 2019). In other words, significant symbols are symbols that have a common meaning to those that share a culture. In the context of this study, the hashtag “#MeToo” can be understood as a significant symbol, as it elicits the same kind of response and meaning, although the interpretation is not identical. Simply put, people have an understanding of what the hashtag means and what it represents, although these meanings and representations might differ across individuals—an idea that can be further explained and explored through Blumer’s contributions.

As a student of Mead, Blumer expanded upon this theory and coined the term

“symbolic interactionism.” Blumer enhanced the existing theoretical framework by acknowledging the importance of studying meaning and the meanings that individuals assign to everyday objects or events. There are three key ideas to Blumer’s theories: (1) individuals act on the meaning they ascribe to something, (2) individuals give meaning to objects and events based on their social interactions, and (3) the meanings that individuals prescribe can change from everyday experiences and interactions (Blumer,

1969; Brown, 2013) . By using these key ideas, social science researchers can begin to develop an understanding of #MeToo and the way that people interact with and understand the campaign.

Blumer’s first tenant, that individuals act on the meaning that they have given something, is relevant when studying #MeToo. In some ways, this idea encompasses the fundamental idea of the hashtag and the research question of the current study: what does this hashtag and campaign mean to the college students interacting with it? The assigned meaning and interpretation of the symbol will often impact the way that people interact 25 with it. The second key idea guides another research question of this study: is the popularity of the campaign impacting the way that college students understand topics that surround #MeToo, specifically sexual violence and victimization? With a strong presence in news media, politics, and social media, #MeToo is being portrayed in several different ways—as a rallying cry for survivors of sexual violence and as a false narrative that is

“very dangerous” for powerful men (Rucker et al., 2018) . Finally, the third component offers the opportunity for students to change the meaning that they give #MeToo. Has this campaign changed the way that this population considers these topics? Using this framework has allowed this study to better understand the way that individuals interact with and comprehend #MeToo.

Importantly, this study takes a broad symbolic interactionist perspective. Using this theoretical perspective allowed the data in the present study to “speak for itself,” so to speak. That is, the present study was not limited to testing a single theoretical perspective. Rather, it was guided by this symbolic interactionist lens in the development of study instruments and the coding process used to analyze the qualitative data. Given the limited literature on #MeToo and other social media driven campaigns or movements, it was important to get as much information from the data and respondents as possible.

Methods, Data, and Sample

The data for this study were collected in October and November of 2019. Participants were undergraduate students at a medium-sized Midwestern public university that responded to a Qualtrics survey invitation via email. In the fall of 2019, the university’s

Office of Information Technology sent an email to all enrolled undergraduate students.

This email explained the research and invited them to provide consent and to participate in the survey.

The survey was 34-questions in length including four open-ended narrative questions, which are the primary focus of the present study. The open ended narrative questions are as follows:

Q1: In a few sentences, please describe your understanding of the #MeToo

campaign (i.e., what does it mean?).

Q2: In a few sentences, please describe the ways that #MeToo has

changed your thoughts about sexual victimization. Please also describe an

example or story that helps demonstrate this change.

Q3: In a few sentences, please describe the ways that #MeToo has

reinforced your thoughts about sexual victimization. Please also describe

an example or story that helps demonstrate this.

Q4: In your opinion, has #MeToo changed the way that the world views

sexual victimization? Please provide support for your response.

At the end of the data collection period, the survey had a total of 500 responses.

Of those 500, 10.6% of cases were trimmed away from the final data set due to the respondent finishing the survey prematurely or providing comedic responses that put the validity of those cases in jeopardy. Of the final sample size (447 responses), 30.2% included incomplete responses which were substituted by completing predictive mean matching. Predictive mean matching is a method of finding missing values that examines the respondent’s answers to previous questions to estimate their response in the missing field. This is used instead of applying the mean response of all participants, which would project a potentially inaccurate estimate for the individual respondent. This method allows researchers to work with the most accurate data possible per respondent (see van

Buuren, 2018).

Compared to the demographics of the university from which the sample was taken, the sample was disproportionately white and female. The four most prevalent racial groups in the sample are as follows: white (83.6%), multi-racial (4.0%), black

(2.3%) and Hispanic (2.0%). Overall, 67.8% of respondents identified themselves as female while 27.0% identified as male, and the remaining 5.3% of the sample identified as a transgender, gender non-conforming or another unlisted identity. Although the disproportionate representation of female-identified could have impacted the results, this gender skew can be better understood in several ways. First, generally speaking, there are more women enrolled in college courses, thus increasing the likelihood that females would dominate the sample (National Center for Education Statistics, 2019). This sample, while exaggerated, also mirrors the demographic layout of the university from which the 28 sample was taken (the majority of the population identifies as female). Finally, although there is no direct evidence to support this claim, another explanation for the disproportionate representation of females in this sample could be due to their connectedness to this topic. It might be that females feel more invested in #MeToo, a campaign that has been understood as female focused in the media, and thus felt uniquely compelled to participate in the study. This understanding of #MeToo as a women’s movement is consistent with the qualitative findings discussed below. Further, the gendered understanding of #MeToo will be further discussed in the findings section.

This sample had relatively equal representation of the academic standing ranks.

27.7% of the sample identified as freshman, 21.0% identified as sophomores, 20.3% identified as juniors, seniors occupied 21.7% of the sample, and 8.9% identified as fifth year students or older.

Finally, when asked if the respondents had ever seen the hashtag “#MeToo”

98.2% responded yes. 92.6% of respondents were familiar with the hashtag because of news outlets like traditional news channels, podcasts, and radio shows. Similarly, 90.6% of respondents reported familiarity with the hashtag due to social media outlets like

Twitter and Facebook.

The bulk of the analysis for this study stems from the four open-ended narrative questions included in the survey. The qualitative data were analyzed using the systematic thematic discovery (STD) method (Vander Ven, 2011; Vander Ven et al., 2018). STD is comprised of three collection and analysis steps. In step one, the investigator creates a search term list that draws from the theoretical framework of the study. This list is used 29 while reading through and initially coding the qualitative data. For example, in the present study, I drew from a basic tenant of symbolic interactionism--definitions and assigning meaning to symbols. This tenant was used to create a search term list relating to possible definitions of #MeToo. These search terms “gender”, “activism”, and

“community” (to name just a few), were used to guide me to the thematic patterns present in the data.

In step two, coders read through their data using the theoretically driven search terms to help identify and develop themes within the responses. This allows the coders to focus on language and phrases relevant to their existing search term list while also identifying new themes that emerge organically from the data. In the present study, for example, I drew from this idea of assigning meaning to #MeToo to create the search terms listed above. I was not, however, limited by those search terms. A qualitative response might have been coded as “gender” but might also represent the emergent theme, “hostility”. To conclude this step, coders are to create a coding sheet that lists all discovered themes, the phrases that reflect those themes, and where in the dataset the themes were found.

Finally, step three is dedicated to creating a quote log. Within this log, quotes are organized by the themes they correspond with. This style of organization allows the coder to easily identify patterns within the data.

I analyzed each of the four open-ended survey questions individually, subsequently creating four sets of search terms, themes, and quote logs that work independently but help develop a full and rich understanding of #MeToo when discussed 30 together. This allowed me to efficiently capture the unique nature of each individual question while still capturing the essence of #MeToo. In the sections that follow, I will discuss each major theme that emerged from the data and remained present throughout analysis. These themes will also be analyzed more closely, by the question that derived the response, where applicable.

The remaining 30 items on the survey collected demographic data and asked respondents if and how they have interacted with #MeToo. These were questions asking where respondents had seen the hashtag (e.g., on the news or on social media) and if they were active participants in the conversations surrounding #MeToo (i.e., Did they comment on a social media post that contained the hashtag? Did they create a post using the hashtag?). These questions were important in understanding the ways that respondents learned about the campaign and how information regarding the campaign was presented to them.

Findings and Discussion

Descriptive Analysis of Student Exposure to and Interaction with #MeToo

The results of the survey show that 98.2% (n= 436) of respondents have seen the hashtag “#MeToo” before. When asked where respondents had seen or heard about the hashtag, 92.6% reported having seen the hashtag through news media outlets such as traditional news sources (newspapers and news channels), radio, or podcasts while 90.6% of respondents reported having seen the hashtag through social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. When asked how respondents had interacted with the hashtag on social media, 54.4% (n= 203) of respondents reported sharing the hashtag, 22.4% (n=100) reported having commented on a post that contained the hashtag, and 1.0% (n= 48) of respondents reported having created a post that contained the hashtag. When considering the same measures, females consistently reported having participated in the three actions listed above more than any other gender identity (females were 83.3%, 80.0%, and 87.5% of respondents, respectively). These findings are meaningful because they mirror the reporting practices of victims and survivors of sexual assault and validate, to some extent, that the campaign and the present study are closely related to the reality of sexual violence and victimization (i.e. women experience sexual violence at higher rates than their male counterparts) (National Sexual Violence Resource Center, n.d.). This could also be indicative of the idea that females feel a unique connectedness to this movement, as females have felt a connectedness to other movements (such as the antirape, battered women’s, incest survivor, and clergy abuse movements) compelling them to interact with the campaign more than other gender identities (Dunn, 2010). While there does not 32 appear to be research to support this claim, the data suggests that this is consistent with this sample and could be a direction for future research.

When asked about their attitudes towards the campaign and its impact on society, at least 70% of respondents (n = 318) indicated disagreement with each of the following statements: “#MeToo has created negative social change,” “#MeToo is only for famous people with a platform,” and “#MeToo is only relevant when big events happen (e.g.,

Ford/Kavanaugh hearings).” This finding is consistent regardless of gender identity. This suggests that, despite popular reasons for dismissing the campaign, this sample sees

#MeToo as a campaign with some degree of longevity and relevance to average people.

Finally, when asked, respondents showed some level of agreement (mean =2.966 on a 4 point Likert scale where 1= strongly agree and 4= strongly disagree) with the following statement: “#MeToo has created a harmful narrative against boys/men.” When the same statement was analyzed separately on the basis of gender identity, the data suggest that women agree (mean= 1.73) with the statement significantly more than the men (mean = 2.82) in the sample (t(187)= 9.7, p<0.001). This difference might suggest that females feel some compassion towards men and the potential ramifications of this campaign, as many argue that #MeToo is a movement for women in a way that it is equally against men. This might also indicate that women are more aware of these consequences due to their disproportionate interaction with the campaign. Finally, this finding could suggest that, perhaps women in the sample hope that men will own up to some of the claims of this campaign and it should create a harmful narrative. 33

This finding is inconsistent with the messaging of the popular counter-campaign

“#HimToo.” #HimToo was created as “a marker of men’s alleged vulnerability to (false) accusation…” in response to Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and her allegations against then

Supreme Court Nomination, Brett Kavanaugh (Boyle & Ratnayake, 2019). This finding suggests that may of the men in this sample subscribe to a different understanding of

#MeToo and the impact it has on gender relations. Interestingly, this finding is inconsistent with the responses that respondents gave to the open-ended narrative questions. As will be discussed, one reason for opposing the movement was due to the hostile environment that the campaign created for gender interactions

Competing Definitions of the #MeToo Campaign: An analysis of open-ended responses

The results of the open-ended narrative questions in the survey found a dividing line when discussing #MeToo. This division of the sample will be discussed further in the following section but will be defined and mentioned briefly here. The division presented in the qualitative data emerged as support for and opposition to #MeToo. The themes within this divide deepen the understanding of #MeToo and its impact on college students and their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization.

Similar to findings related to social media, the survey data suggest that there is a division of understanding and agreement in regard to #MeToo and the campaign’s messaging. Those that support the campaign and its messaging (n = 201) do so for three reasons. According to respondents, the campaign builds a sense of community for those that have experienced sexual violence and their allies, it is empowering to the survivors 34 that use the hashtag and, it creates an awareness of an issue that has been largely ignored until now. These motivations became the basis for the three themes discussed within this half of the divide—community building, empowering survivors, and encouraging activism.

Supporting #MeToo

Community Building. Community building was the most dominant theme among those that support the #MeToo campaign. In this study, community building can be understood as the general feeling of companionship for survivors and the understanding that, as a victim or survivor of sexual violence, you are not alone.

Throughout the coding process, it became evident that there were differences in the ways that survivors discussed community and the ways in which allies noticed the formation of this community.

For the survivors in the sample (n= ~44 [this is an estimate, as those that identified as survivors did so in the open-ended narrative questions]), they discussed

#MeToo as an awareness campaign that allowed them to acknowledge the amount of people who identify as victims or survivors of sexual violence. The awareness of the prevalence of sexual violence removed the censorship that plagues most survivors of such experiences. One respondent expressed this in saying:

The movement has changed my thoughts by making me realize that I am not alone in my experiences, and that there are more and more people today offering their hand in help... (Female, 18)

Another respondent shared a similar message by stating how personalizing the campaign has been, revealing a community of support within their already established community:

The #MeToo movement has helped me to truly realize that there are survivors all around me. I knew this before, but being able to hear from victims that I consider friends and colleagues helps to make the impact of assault more visible and more motivating to others to push for change. (Female, 21)

In addition to creating a community based on the prevalence of sexual violence, several respondents identified feeling that they were bound to other survivors due to their shared feelings and emotional processing of their victimization. Respondents pointed to their feelings of shame and guilt when reflecting on their victimization but felt a sense of relief when discovering this community of survivors. One respondent said:

The #MeToo [campaign] has changed my outlook drastically. It showed me that I didn't need to be afraid to tell people what has happened to me in the past. It has also helped me come to the realization that I'm not to be blamed for someone else's unwanted sexual actions towards me. When I was younger, I was sexually assaulted by someone I considered a friend, and at first I didn't want anyone to know what had happened because I was scared that they'd think different of me, but now I know that there are people that want to support me through the rough times.” (Female, 18)

Finally, some stated that this community and hashtag shed light on a population of people that felt their trauma. This is an important aspect of this theme, as the other hashtag users are people who “get it” and can identify with and relate to other hashtag users. One respondent discussed this well by saying:

Being a sexual assault survivor allows me to connect with other people who understand my trauma, and really reinforced the idea that we can stand together and talking about the problem can actually help one to move past it. (Female, unknown age) 36

Understanding this theme from the perspective of the survivor is incredibly important in defining #MeToo and capturing the impact that it has had on the way that college students consider sexual violence and victimization. As the symbolic interactionism perspective suggests, the way that different groups of people define and discuss symbols, like the hashtag, influences the meaning given to the symbol by the larger audience. Given that Tarana Burke’s initial organization was built on the idea of a survivor centered effort, one could argue that, without survivors and their perspective of this campaign, there is not a campaign at all. Further, if these individuals were not on social media, responding to Milano’s original post and sharing their stories by using the hashtag, outsiders to the campaign would not be able to comment on the widespread effects of this campaign.

Equally important, however, is the way that outsiders, or those that identify as allies or “viewers” of hashtag posts, discuss and define this campaign. As mentioned above, this sense of community was felt by survivors and noticed by allies and viewers.

While these two groups discuss community in similar ways, the responses from survivors. Identifying as a survivor was not a question on the survey]) are based on experiences and shared feelings, while the responses from allies and “viewers” state the prevalence and unbiased nature of sexual violence. They discuss this community in terms of the number of people that have posted the hashtag and community as an idealized environment where allies are outspoken and plentiful. The focus shifts from the experience of the survivor to the praise of the allies stating their support and use of the hashtag. The following responses depict this shift: 37

…It is also meant to foster a sense of community among survivors by showing them just how many people are out there that are allies to survivors and are willing to offer a listening ear to people who want to talk to someone about their experience… (Female, 20)

#MeToo allows people of all race, gender, and cultural backgrounds, to come together and support one another through the struggles that survivors face. Not only that, but survivors are able to feel like they don’t have to hide from the world. It’s hard enough to have to go through some type of sexually violent related traumatic experience, but having to live through it alone is something that is almost impossible. It is also great to see the support from those who are allies of the #MeToo movement they are just as important to the healing of these types of issues and the to the survivors. (Female, 18)

The defining difference between the two groups is the focus of the conversation.

The data from the open-ended narrative questions suggest that survivors discuss this community in a way that is survivor focused. Allies were rarely discussed in responses from those that identified as survivors. Outsiders to this campaign, however, discuss this community in a way that suggests that the survivors are still central to the community, but is heavily influenced by the presence of allies and viewers.

Empowering Survivors. The idea of empowerment, specifically empowering survivors, is a second motivation for supporting #MeToo. Similar to community building, the theme “empowering survivors” was commonly felt by survivors of sexual violence and noticed by viewers and allies as something that #MeToo awarded those survivors.

For the purposes of this study, empowerment is discussed in terms of taking back or being given a voice, power, or control in the conversation regarding sexual violence and victimization. Most survivors discussed this empowerment as having been given by

#MeToo in some ways, although these forms of empowerment differ slightly. One 38 respondent stated that their feeling of empowerment came from a celebrity figure stepping forward with their own story of sexual victimization:

I would have never felt comfortable telling anyone about my own experiences with sexual abuse had I not seen Terry Crews come foreword [sic] and told his own experiences with sexual abuse under the #metoo movement. (Male, 20)

This is reminiscent of Alyssa Milano’s initial social media post encouraging others to use the hashtag. Without those initial Hollywood stars stepping forward with sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein, Milano likely would not have fueled this campaign on social media. By someone with an established platform stepping forward with sexual assault allegations, they inspire and empower others to do the same, despite conflicting responses to that announcement. This inspiration and empowerment effort continues with average people by normalizing the use of the hashtag and creating a space for such dialogue. Another respondent comments on this: “as a victim of sexual assault, #MeToo has encouraged me to tell my story. By hearing other stories I have felt more comfortable telling mine and relating to others” (Female, 18).

A second type of empowerment emerged in the open-ended narrative responses.

This empowerment was created by the giving and taking of power from the aggressor. In ways that are not defined by the responses, these respondents felt as though #MeToo has allowed them to feel powerful in the face of their perpetrators. When asked how #MeToo has changed their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization, one respondent replied by saying:

As someone who has struggled with sexual assault, I feel like the #MeToo movement has empowered me and helped me to see that I'm not alone in 39

my struggles. It has made me feel powerful against aggressors and has helped me to stand up for myself. (Female, 20)

In response to the same open-ended narrative question, one respondent identified the feeling of empowerment in regard to how they view themselves. #MeToo allowed some respondents to see themselves as survivors of an experience, rather than victims of a sex related crime.

In my opinion, my views have not changed, rather than solidified. I am a survivor, and instead of refusing to even remember my experience in avoidance of feeling like a victim, I was given confidence to admit that while I may not see myself as a victim, I AM a survivor. It allowed me to see how many others are like me. (Female, 18)

For most outside supporters, empowerment is depicted by the number of survivors using the hashtag to tell their stories for, often, the first time. Outside supporters, like survivors, see #MeToo as the platform through which survivors feel empowered. When asked to describe their understanding of #MeToo and what the hashtag means, several respondents said that the hashtag and campaign allowed survivors to take their voices back:

To me, the #MeToo movement is a platform of inclusion for women to share their stories of experience relating to sexual harassment, or assault. It is a way for women to take their voices back and make themselves heard and also speak to other people who have been through the same kind of experiences that they have and to get support in the community of survivors. (Female, 18)

Another respondent said something similar:

The metoo campaign was created to give a voice to women who felt suppressed and had held back on sharing terrible things that had happened to them. It was created to give them justice and make they know they’re not alone. (Female, 20)

This feeling of empowerment is important because it changes the way that survivors of sexual violence consider themselves and their experiences with sexual violence. In a way, this is the heart of #MeToo, as Tarana Burke envisioned it. Victims and survivors are redefining themselves due to their interactions with and understanding of the campaign. This change represents the personification of social change. This finding is also important because it is consistent despite identifying as a survivor, ally, or viewer.

Within this sample, it is understood and accepted that #MeToo has provided empowerment for survivors that are using the hashtag to tell their stories.

Encouraging Activism. The final motivation for supporting #MeToo is encouraging activism. The respondents in this sample defined activism in several overlapping ways. For the purposes of this study, activism is defined as raising awareness of sexual violence and its prevalence, enacting some kind of change (social, legislative, or otherwise), or preventing future sexual violence. While the previous two themes displayed differences depending on if the respondent identified as a survivor of sexual violence, most respondents (despite identification) discussed activism in similar ways.

A central component of what the respondents considered to be activism is raising awareness of sexual violence and victimization. Some respondents even defined #MeToo as an awareness campaign:

The MeToo campaign is meant to raise awareness of the number of people who have experienced sexual harassment or sexual assault. It shows that no matter who you are, you are almost guaranteed to know someone who is a victim. (Female, 20)

A second respondent used the following definition: 41

The #MeToo campaign is an awareness campaign about exposing the profound and widespread effects of sexual assault and violence, particularly for women but not excluding men. #MeToo seeks to uncover how frequently sexual assaults happen and how deeply they affect victims. (Male, 20)

While the above quotes discuss raising awareness for this issue generally, some respondents also discussed the importance of acknowledging different gender identities and their equally important experiences with sexual violence. One respondent acknowledged that this campaign was started by women, but expressed the importance of inclusion in this campaign:

The #MeToo movement is focused on sexual assault awareness and using that knowledge to encourage change. The #MeToo movement was started by woman [sic], but is an organization that is determined to empower all individuals and to hold those accountable who have done wrong. It encourages conversationsa [sic] and is motivated for societal change. (Female, 21)

When asked about how #MeToo has changed their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization, some respondents suggested that #MeToo shed light on the fact that sexual violence happens to more than just women.

#Metoo made me realize that it isn’t only women who can experience sexual assault. Men experience such things as well. I remember watching a commercial of the #Metoo and one person who stood out was Terry Crews who was sexually assaulted by a Hollywood executive. It didn’t occur to me that men can also be victims. (Female, 18)

Similarly, when asked how the campaign has reinforced their perceptions of sexual violence and victimization, one respondent said:

#MeToo has reinforced the fact that sexual victimization can happy [sic] to anyone of any race or gender… (Transgender female, 23)

Finally, other respondents considered activism in #MeToo to be enacting preventative legislation or social change. For one respondent, when asked to define

#MeToo, they discussed raising awareness as a first step in activism.

it is an awareness campaign for survivors of sexual assault. the hashtag is meant to inspire survivors who have either not shared their story, or may need to share it again to step into the spotlight. When survivors speak up via #metoo it increased media coverage of the cultural movement to change the social issues is sexual assault and not believing survivors. (Female, 20)

Another respondent provided a nuanced response that connects all three motivations for supporting the campaign.

#MeToo is a movement meant to bring voices to victims of assault and rape. It is meant to create an environment that is conducive to sharing experiences related to assault and sexual violence so that changes in our laws and judiciary process might occur to benefit victims. It is a way to advocate for victims [sic] rights via social media. (Female, 21) Although it seems obvious that a campaign of this nature would hope to inspire some level of activism, #MeToo is unique in the fact that it is driven solely by social media. As discussed in the literature review above, there have been several collectivities that have used social media as a tool for their organization and messaging but have eventually moved away from social media as a driving force for their efforts. #MeToo, at the time that this study is written, continues to use social media sites as a central force in their organization and messaging. This makes creating social change in “real life” an interesting goal. Some respondents discussed it best in saying that this activism is multi- faceted and requires several steps, some of which include raising awareness and empowering victims and survivors to use their voice. 43

In trying to understand the motivations for supporting #MeToo, it is important to note that, while these themes were defined and discussed individually, it was difficult to disentangle the motivations discussed by the respondents. When describing support for social movements, it is often the case that people will cite things like empowerment, community building, and activism in a way that suggests that these words are synonymous. The respondents in this sample are no exceptions. Although this might be considered a limitation of the study, this represents the construction of meaning that symbolic interactionism is interested. These responses could be depicting an honest understanding of the way that #MeToo operates and impacts conversations regarding sexual violence and victimization.

Opposing #MeToo

Those that oppose #MeToo and it’s messaging (n = 35) feel negatively towards the campaign because of the gender politics and gender relations that surround the conversation started by #MeToo. The respondents that opposed the campaign also questioned the moral legitimacy and motives of the campaign and those that use the hashtag to step forward with their own sexual assault allegations. While the group of respondents that oppose the campaign is relatively small, their “voices” through the narrative questions were passionate and aggressive.

Gender Politics. As stated above, the group that opposed #MeToo in this sample was relatively small but appeared to feel passionately about the negative consequences of

#MeToo. Of those that opposed #MeToo, 68.6% (n= 24) identified as male, 22.9% (n= 8) identified as female, and 5.6% (n= 3) identified as non-binary. As the gender breakdown 44 demonstrates, males were disproportionately hostile towards the campaign compared to other gender identities in the sample. One reason for this disproportionate hostility might be due to the idea that #MeToo supports women, exclusively, while in an equal effort, targets men in a way that makes it seem like all men are potential rapists.

It's a bunch of bullshit that has created more harm than good. #MeToo has created the image that all men are rapists and that the world is completely stacked against women. It has created this victim complex among women and minorities, blaming cis straight white men for every problem in the world. (Female, 20)

Another respondent replied with similar remarks, stating:

Its [sic] important people know these events occur, but it has sparked a genuine witch hunt. Literally the salem witch trials [sic]. Its [sic] a game of e [sic] said she said and that's not an acceptable reason to ruin someone's life.. It makes men and boys out to be terrorists and they are not. (Female, 20)

When asked to define their understanding of #MeToo and state what the hashtag means, a third respondent made the fervent point that #MeToo has created a system of misandry (the hatred of and prejudice against men and boys) that comes to impact the political system in the United States. They further comment on the idea that men will sacrifice most things in exchange for sex.

The #MeToo campaign is a result of the joining of forces of well-meaning idiots and statist-misandrists. By the first group, it is intended to provide a more understanding environment for women withholding stories of sexual assault. By the other, it is intended to expand the power of the federal government and establish misandry throughout the Americal [sic] cultures. In practice, it polarises [sic] those who already believe most or all men will sacrifice ethics for sex from those who don't, as well as weakening the already shaky loyalty of the American Left to the doctrine of "innocent until proven guilty." It has doubtless led to some true stories of sexual assault coming out, but I do not believe those were worth it when also taking into account the false ones and the aforementioned other problems it causes. (Male, 19) 45

This generalization from rapists or predators to all men being cruel has had several negative consequences in the way that different gender identities, specifically men and women, interact with one another. First, several respondents noticed that since the popularity of #MeToo, women are now more fearful of men than ever before. One respondent noticed this fear in his female friends, despite the male having made any sexual advances towards her.

As #MeToo and other "progressive" culture has become the norm in our culture, I have felt increasing discomfort from people I meet who immediately judge both myself and other young men simply due to our age and sex. I have received messages from female friends who will call or text me, legitimately in fear, due to the mere presence of a man sitting down near them or passing them on the street, who show no interest in them whatsoever yet they feel fear just being near a man they do not know. (Male, 20)

This feeling of fear is not exclusive to women, though. The campaign has also generated apprehension in men regarding wanting to make sexual advances toward their female counterparts. Some, like the respondents below, comment on fearing the consequences of #MeToo. When asked how the world has changed as a result of #MeToo, three respondents commented on this “sex effect”:

Yea. Its [sic] made men afraid to even touch women and it’s made the number of false accusations sky rocket [sic]. It’s absurd and wrong. (Female, 21)

…I’d say for some men, it has given them a sense of fear because the next time they look awkwardly at a women [sic], they could be the victim of a raging mob of ignorant people. (Male, 19)

… I think men are getting scared because they think they're going to get accused of something. The trick is, don't assault people and you have nothing to worry about... (Female, 21)

As with the gender skew in hostility towards the movement, there were differences in the way that men and women discussed the above findings. Of those that disagreed with the messaging of the campaign, the men provided responses that were entirely negative. They provided responses like this:

It has honestly made a joke of people who have actually gone through very traumatic experiences. Touch a woman on the butt accidentally 30 years ago and uh-oh now you might go to jail. Stuff like that should infuriate people who have actually gone thru sexual assault and what not. (Male, 21)

The women in the sample, on the other hand, provided more nuanced responses that demonstrated some level of positivity toward the movement with the underlying message that they still disapproved of the campaign. This is demonstrated by the quote below:

I think it has done a lot of good for the world so that people know that it’s not something off in the distance- it’s something that has happened for too long and to too many people around us. I also think it has added to the clear divide between our community (that was really shown after the election of Trump). It’s something that some people joke about and that really shows people who cares and who doesn’t. (Female, 22)

Although there are some differences dependent upon gender identity, generally, according to this college aged sample, the most common reason for opposing #MeToo is due to how the campaign has influenced gender relations in “real life”. This is important because it demonstrates that social media driven collectivities and campaigns do have some impact on life offline. This suggests that, with direction and specified goals,

#MeToo has the potential to make “real” change offline. 47

Questioning Moral Legitimacy. As defined above, responses that were coded for this theme questioned the moral legitimacy of the campaign and those that use the hashtag to step forward with sexual assault allegations. According to Suchman, moral legitimacy “reflects a positive normative evaluation of the organization and its activities” and rests on judgements “…about whether a given activity is ‘the right thing to do’”

(579; Suchman, 1995). The present study likens the #MeToo campaign and its supporters or hashtag users to the “organization.” Responses that were coded for this theme questioned the moral legitimacy of hashtag users in similar ways that people question sexual assault allegations in “real life.” These respondents also questioned the motivation for stepping forward with sexual assault allegations in the moment of #MeToo, rather than when the assault took place, and why people were turning to social media instead of law enforcement or advocates.

As with most sexual assault allegations, many respondents that oppose #MeToo questioned the legitimacy of the claims made by hashtag users. Further, these respondents imply that there is some benefit to using the hashtag to talk about individual experiences of sexual violence. One respondent was pointed in saying: “Women lie about being sexually assaulted or harassed to get money or something in return that benefits them in some way,” (Male, 23). While that respondent pointed toward a monetary reward, others pointed to gaining popularity as potential motivating factors for victims: “I think it's basically just attention seeking on behalf of popular girls and an attempt at fitting in among leftist girls” (Male, 24). 48

In addition to using #MeToo to gain some benefit, respondents argued that the frequency of the hashtag detracted from the “real” victims and made all of the allegations difficult to believe. When asked if they believed if #MeToo has changed the way that the world understands sexual violence and victimization, one respondent generalized hashtag use to false allegations stemming from the campaign:

Yes I believe that the false allegations steming [sic] from the campaign have damaged the credibility of the claim hurting women who want to in the future tell their story or see their abuser face justice in a court of law. This has been a disservice to them and should be heavily condemned. (Male, unknown age)

In response to the same question, another respondent made a similar remark:

I do think the world of you [sic] sexual victimization differently now. But I will say, the world also has become more skeptical because of the #MeToo movement. Because support was so open, women began to just flood the world and media with their stories. This is so great but with each story comes a perverse Criminal. To make someone a criminal is a hefty choice and one we have seen the world get wrong. As a society we need to make sure each story has validity and that’s why you see so much push back [sic] against the movement. (Male, 18)

An extension of this theme is that those that oppose the campaign believe that there are “true” victims, but the majority of hashtag users are spreading false allegations.

This takes away from the positive effect of the campaign.

I've seen people come forward in the media and on the news saying they were sexually harassed. This should be a positive change but how do we know if these people are telling the truth. In modern times people have come forward with outlandish lies just to get their five minutes of fame. To me anyone can come forward and say they were sexually harassed and while some are telling the truth some others are only lying to get recognition. (Male, 18)

The similarity between responses to the campaign and responses to sexual violence in “real life” suggests that there is a correlation between this online campaign 49 and the way that people understand sexual violence and victimization off-screen. One such similarity is the successful creation of the “sympathetic victim,” meaning it should be the “norm” to provide sympathy to a victim online and offline. The “normal” victim, according to Dunn, is one that is powerless in preventing their victimization. Dunn argues that “we blame victims if they are not helpless but sometimes, we do not respect helpless people very much or identify with them” (4; 2010). If society is presented with a victim that does not fit this mold, or their story does not align with what they consider “typical” assaults or victimizations, some begin to question the legitimacy of the claims as well as the label of victim or survivor. The above findings suggest that there is something about

#MeToo victims and survivors that does elicit that sympathy from those that oppose the campaign and question the moral legitimacy of hashtag users. There is something about hashtag users that, perhaps, makes their stories less believable or takes away from the status of “victim.”

Conclusion

The goal of the present study was to contribute to the limited literature regarding

#MeToo. Specifically, this study aimed to understand how #MeToo has impacted perceptions of sexual violence and victimization offline. It accomplished these goals by defining #MeToo as a campaign, rather than a social movement (as it is often referred to).

With this label in mind, I was able to study #MeToo in a systematic way that used a symbolic interactionism perspective. This perspective, along with the systematic thematic discovery method of analysis, allowed me to generate an understanding of #MeToo that was influenced primarily by the respondents in this sample.

The open-ended narrative questions from the survey produced a divide in the sample—those that support and oppose the campaign. Those that supported the campaign did so because they saw that it built a community of support and understanding for those that use the hashtag, it empowers survivors, and encourages activism. Those that oppose

#MeToo did so because it negatively affected the interactions that different gender identities have with one another. Specifically, men and women became fearful of each other in ways that were exaggerated by the campaign. Additionally, people oppose

#MeToo because they question the moral legitimacy of the campaign and their followers, citing questionable motives for using the hashtag and detraction from “real” victims.

Although this study made significant contributions to the literature considering

#MeToo and social media driven collectivities, there are limitations of the present study.

One such limitation of this study is the sample size. With only 447 respondents, it is difficult to know if the findings are truly generalizable to the larger population. Although 51 this is true, the present study provided a foundational understanding of the ways in which college students define and interact with #MeToo. This is an important population to study because, as discussed in the literature review, college campuses are rampant with conversations of sexual violence, rape culture, rape myth, and victim blaming. Beginning with this population is an important first step in understanding #MeToo, although future studies should reach beyond college campuses and into a broader, more representative population.

Despite limitations, this project has enhanced the limited literature about #MeToo in important ways. This study established that social media is a powerful tool to collective efforts, such as #MeToo. This allows social media users to be confronted by a significant symbol (e.g., a hashtag) and rapidly generate a meaning for that symbol.

Further, that meaning can change and become more nuanced as a result of the interactions that take place on social media between users. Similarly, this study captured the early stages of the social construction of what #MeToo means. The consistency of overlapping themes and responses (even within some opposition responses) suggests that

#MeToo truly represents community, empowerment, and activism to those that have interacted with it. The findings also point to the social construction of #MeToo from the opposition standpoint, an equally important and powerful perspective. Importantly, using the symbolic interactionist perspective created a unique, important, and timely intersection of sociological subdisciplines discussed in the literature review: social movements, social media, and victimization. This study and its findings have played an 52 important role in creating a foundational understanding of #MeToo and filling an essential hole in existing #MeToo literature.

References

Black Lives Matter. (2019). Find a Chapter. Black Lives Matter.

https://blacklivesmatter.com/take-action/find-a-chapter/

Blumer, H. (1969). Symbolic Interactionism: Perspective and method. Prentice-Hall.

Boyle, K., & Ratnayake, C. (2019). #HimToo and the networking of misogyny in the age

of #MeToo. Feminist Media Studies.

Brown, S. (2013). Symbolic Interactionism.

Charon, J. (2007). Symbolic Interactionism: An Introduction, an Interpretation, an

Integration (9th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall. https://eds-a-ebscohost-

com.proxy.library.ohio.edu/eds/detail/detail?vid=6&sid=134c2ca0-56fa-499a-

a79a-30aef9dbc221%40sdc-v-

sessmgr04&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c2l0ZQ%3d%3d#A

N=alice.b3924161&db=cat00572a

Christiansen, J. (2017). Four Stages of Social Movements. In Salem Press Encyclopedia.

Great Neck Publishing.

Cox, J. M. (2017). The source of a movement: Making the case for social media as an

informational source using Black Lives Matter. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 40(11),

1847–1854. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2017.1334935

Crowdtap. (2014). New Study Reveals 30% of Millennials Media Time is Spent with

User Generated Content. Business Wire (English).

https://proxy.library.ohio.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=bwh&AN=bizwire.c53837652&site=eds-live&scope=site 54

Dunn, J. L. (2010). Judging Victims: Why We Stigmatize Survivors and How they

Reclaim Respect. Lynne Rienner Publishers.

Edrington, C. L., & Lee, N. M. (2018). Tweeting a Social Movement: Black Lives Matter

and its use of Twitter to Share Information, Build Community, and Promote

Action. 2, 18.

Fisher, B. S., Daigle, L. E., Cullen, F. T., & Turner, M. G. (2003). Reporting Sexual

Victimization to the Police and Others: Results from a National-Level Study of

College Women. Criminal Justice and Behavior, Issue 1, 6.

Gillani, N., Yuan, A., Saveski, M., Vosoughi, S., & Roy, D. (2018). Me, My Echo

Chamber, and I: Introspection on Social Media Polarization.

https://doi.org/10.1145/3178876.3186130

Giraldi, A., & Monk-Turner, E. (2017). Perception of rape culture on a college campus:

A look at social media posts. Women’s Studies International Forum, 62, 116–124.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2017.05.001

Hayes, R. M., Abbott, R. L., & Cook, S. (2016). It’s Her Fault: Student Acceptance of

Rape Myths On Two College Campuses. Violence Against Women, 22(13), 1540–

1555. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801216630147

Hayes-Smith, R. M., & Levett, L. M. (2010). Student perceptions of sexual assault

resources and prevalence of rape myth attitudes. Feminist Criminology, 5(4),

335–354. https://doi.org/10.1177/1557085110387581

Larabee, A. (2018). Editorial: Celebrity, Politics, and the “Me, Too” Moment. The

Journal of Popular Culture, 51(1), 7–9. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpcu.12650 55

Little, W. & McGivern, R. (2012). Chapter 21. Social Movements and Social Change. In

Introduction to Sociology (1st ed.).

https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/chapter/chapter21-social-

movements-and-social-change/#section21.2.

McIntosh, H. (2019). Rape Culture. Salem Press Encyclopedia.

Me Too Movement. (2018). About. Me Too Movement. https://metoomvmt.org/about/

National Center for Education Statistics. (2019).

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/raceindicators/indicator_ree.asp

National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (n.d.). Sexual Assault in the United States.

Get Statistics. https://www.nsvrc.org/node/4737

Pew Research Center. (2019, October 2). Americans Are Wary of the Role Social Media

Sites Play in Delivering the News.

https://www.journalism.org/2019/10/02/americans-are-wary-of-the-role-social-

media-sites-play-in-delivering-the-news/

Rafferty, R. (2011). Motivations Behind Cyber Bulling and Online Aggression: Cyber

Sanctions, Dominance, and Trolling Online. Ohio University.

Ritzer, G.; Stepnisky, J. (2019). Contemporary Sociological Theory and its Classical

Roots (5th ed.). Sage.

Rosen, L. D. (2010, March 27). Welcome to the iGeneration! Psychology Today.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/rewired-the-psychology-

technology/201003/welcome-the-igeneration 56

Rucker, P., Costa, R., Dawsey, J. & Parker, A. (2018). Defending Kavanaugh, Trump

laments #MeToo as ‘very dangerous’ for powerful men. Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/defending-kavanaugh-trump-laments-

metoo-as-very-dangerous-for-powerful-men/2018/09/26/e9116536-c1a4-11e8-

97a5-ab1e46bb3bc7_story.html

Schmidt, S. (2017). #MeToo: Harvey Weinstein case moves thousands to tell their own

stories of abuse, break silence. Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/10/16/me-too-

alyssa-milano-urged-assault-victims-to-tweet-in-solidarity-the-response-was-

massive/

Staggenborg, S., & Lecomte, J. (2009). Social Movement Campaings: Mobilization and

Outcomes in the Montreal Women’s Movement Community. Mobilization, 14(2),

163–180.

Stewart, C. J., Smith, C. A., & Denton, R. E., Jr. (2012). Persuasion and social

movements (Alden 6th Floor HN17 .S827 2012 copy: 1). Long Grove, Ill. :

Waveland Press, c2012.

Suchman, M. (1995). Managing Legitimacy: Strategic and Institutional Approaches. The

Academy of Management Review, 20(3).

Tilly, C. (2004). Social Movements, 1768-2004. Paradigm Publishers.

Tufecki, Z. (2017). Twitter and Tear Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked

Protest. Yale University Press. 57

Twenge, J. M. (2017). Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? The Atlantic.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/09/has-the-smartphone-

destroyed-a-generation/534198/

Vaidhyanathan, S. (2018). Chapter 7: The Disinformation Machine. In Antisocial Media:

How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy (pp. 175–195).

Oxford University Press. van Buuren, S. (2018). Flexible Imputation of Missing Data (2nd ed.). Chapman and

Hall.

Vander Ven, T. (2011). Getting Wasted: Why College Students Drink Too Much and

Party So Hard. New York University.

Vander Ven, T., Wright, L., & Fesmire, C. (2018). Sedation-Facilitated Sexual Violence.

Criminal Justice Review, 43(1), 60–74.

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Thesis and Dissertation Services ! !