It Wasn't That Bad': The Necessity of Social Framework Evidence in Use of the Reasonable Woman Standard

AuthorAnna I. Burke
PositionJ.D. Candidate, The University of Iowa College of Law, 2020; M. Sc., University of Glasgow, 2017; B.A., Luther College, 2015
Pages771-798
771
“It Wasn’t That Bad”: The Necessity of
Social Framework Evidence in Use of
the Reasonable Woman Standard
Anna I. Burke*
ABSTRACT: The #MeToo era will likely lead to an increased number of
sexual harassment claims. The movement has additionally highli ghted the
diverging ways that sexual harassment is perceived, largely along gender
lines. Because of these varying viewpoints, a reasonable woman standard is
necessary so that sexual harassment cases are not limited to the most extreme
instances of workplace harassment. However, the reasonable woman
standard assumes that individuals with different gender perspectives perceive
the same social interaction differently. If social framework evidence cannot be
used to give background information on how different people handle sexual
harassment, the reasonable woman standard will become ineffective. This
Note argues that the admissibility of this background evidence is necessary to
give victims of sexual harassment a greater chance to obtain justice.
I.INTRODUCTION ............................................................................. 772
II. SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIMS UNDER TITLE VII ......................... 775
A.EVOLUTION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT AS A CAUSE OF ACTION
UNDER TITLE VII OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACTS OF 1964 ............ 775
B.CAUSE OF ACTION UNDER TITLE VII ........................................ 777
C.SEXUAL HARASSMENT AS SEX DISCRIMINATION IN COURT ......... 778
D.THE REASONABLE WOMAN STANDARD ..................................... 781
E.EVIDENCE OF UNWELCOMED CONDUCT IN TITLE VII CLAIMS ..... 782
III.THE REASONABLE WOMAN STANDARD IS GROUNDED IN THE
THEORY THAT DIFFERENT GENDERS SEE THE WORLD
DIFFERENTLY ................................................................................. 784
A.THE IMPACT OF VARYING PERCEPTIONS ON COGNITIVE
PROCESSING ............................................................................ 784
B.GENDERED PERCEPTIONS OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT ................... 786
*
J.D. Candidate, The University of Iowa College of Law, 2020; M. Sc., University of
Glasgow, 2017; B.A., Luther College, 2015.
772 IOWA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 105:771
C.ABILITY TO APPLY THE REASONABLE WOMAN STANDARD .......... 789
IV.SOLUTION—SOCIAL FRAMEWORK EVIDENCE AS A
FOUNDATION TO USE THE REASONABLE WOMAN STANDARD ...... 790
A.SOCIAL FRAMEWORK EVIDENCE ................................................ 791
B.THE ADMISSIBILITY OF EXPERT TESTIMONY IN FEDERAL
COURTS .................................................................................. 793
C.PROBLEMS WITH SOCIAL FRAMEWORK EVIDENCE ...................... 795
D.SOCIAL FRAMEWORK EVIDENCE ALLOWS THE REASONABLE
WOMAN STANDARD TO BE MORE EFFECTIVELY APPLIED ............ 797
V.CONCLUSION ................................................................................ 798
I. INTRODUCTION
Sexual harassment is a long-standing, pervasive issue in the workplace.
However, in the last few years sexual harassment has permeated national
headlines and has become a perennial topic in national discourse. Some of
the most notable controversies in the last few years include: the allegations
and actions of President Trump during the 2016 presidential election;1 the
Hollywood scandals involving Harvey Weinstein,2 Kevin Spacey,3 Louis CK,4
1. Laignee Barron, ‘Of Course He Said It.’ Billy Bush Hits Back at Trump’s Access Hollywood
Tape Claim, TIME (Dec. 4, 2017), http://time.com/5047223/donald-trump-access-hollywood-
tape-billy-bush [https://perma.cc/X9DY-URMK] (discussing the Access Hollywood tape which
features President Trump bragging about past sexual misconduct); Eliza Relman, The 25 Women
Who Have Accused Trump of Sexual Misconduct, BUS. INSIDER (Oct. 9, 2019, 2:07 PM), https://
www.businessinsider.com/women-accused-trump-sexual-misconduct-list-2017-12 [https://perma.cc/
V5KF-T6U8] (discussing the number of women who have accused President Trump of sexual
misconduct).
2. Jodi Kantor & Megan Twohey, Harvey Weinstein Paid Off Sexual Harassment Accusers for
Decades, N.Y. TIMES (Oct. 5, 2017), https://www.nyti mes.com/2017/10/05/us/harvey-weinstein-
harassment-allegations.html [https://perma.cc/MV7A-S5DK] (breaking the news story of
Weinstein’s harassment and payoffs); Ronan Farrow, From Aggressive Overtures to Sexual Assault:
Harvey Weinstein’s Accusers Tell Their Stories, NEW YORKER (Oct. 23, 2017), https://www.new
yorker.com/news/news-desk/from- aggressive-overtures-to-sexual-a ssault-harvey-weinsteins-accusers-
tell-their-stories [https://perma.cc/KSK6-3MPC] (detailing t he stories of the harassment victims).
3. Adam B. Vary, Actor Anthony Rapp: Kevin Spacey Made a Sexual Advance Toward Me when I Was
14, BUZZFEED NEWS, https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/adambvary/anthony-rapp-kevin-spacey-
made-sexual-advance-when-i-was-14 [https://perma.cc/N6J3-KG2U] (last updated Oct. 30, 2017,
12:37 AM) (reporting on the interview where Rapp made the allegation); see also E. Alex Jung, Man
Comes Forward to Describe an Alleged Extended Sexual Relationship He Had at Age 14 with Kevin
Spacey, VULTURE (Nov. 2, 2017), htt p://www.vulture.com/2017/11/kevin-spacey-all eged-sexual-
relationship.html [https:// perma.cc/N557-27BE] (providing further detail on the Spacey allegation).
4. Melena Ryzik et al., Louis C.K. Is Accused by 5 Women of Sexual Misconduct, N.Y. TIMES (Nov.
9, 2017), https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/09/arts/television/louis-ck-sexual-misconduct.html
[https://perma.cc/H2TZ-KWA3] (breaking the Louis C.K. allegations); see also Elahe Izadi, Louis
C.K. Responds to Sexual Misconduct Allegations: ‘These Stories Are True, WASH. POST (Nov. 10, 2017),

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