Two researchers analyzed data on 177 political science conferences and workshops held in the USA, finding that only 19% of the events had codes of conduct available online that included measures to prevent sexual misconduct or racial discrimination among participants. The survey was carried out by Lucie Lu, a postdoctoral student at Columbia University, New York, and Nora Webb Williams, a researcher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The pair identified a common profile of conferences with codes of conduct: large events that have been running for several decades, supported by diversity and ethics committees, and promoted by organizations with permanent staff.
According to the study, published in the journal Political Science & Politics, not all guideline-backed conferences clearly defined prohibited behavior, provided channels for reporting violations, or shared information on potential punishments for misconduct. These three requirements, say the authors, are essential for a code to be effective at preventing or dealing with incidents. About 85% of the rules described what constitutes a violation, and 74% offered a mechanism for reporting transgressions, although only 6% used a reporting channel that was external to the organization putting on the event. The survey also showed that 62% of codes explained how potential violations would be investigated and 74% listed the consequences of noncompliance.
The study cites a survey conducted by the American Political Science Association (APSA) in explaining the importance of codes of conduct. According to the APSA survey, 37% of 2,400 respondents said they had been affected by some form of negative behavior at the association’s annual meetings between 2013 and 2016. Humiliation and dismissive or derogatory comments were reported by 42% of men and 22% of women interviewed. The use of inappropriate language, such as offensive sexist comments, was cited by 30% of women and 10% of men, while unwanted sexual advances were reported by 11% of women and 3% of men. “Even in those cases where the percentage of members experiencing such incidents may be low, the number is nonetheless disconcerting,” states the survey’s executive summary, highlighting that 29 people reported having suffered threats of professional retaliation for not being sexually cooperative.
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