The Factors Affecting Street Harassment of Women: A Study Based on a PAR Study

Street harassment is a form of violence against women that threatens women of all age groups and different circumstances. While the existence of such problem is consistently being denied and neglected, it affects the victims in various ways; from hurting their self-esteem to the murder of the victim. Scholarly studies address the phenomena and thus pave the way to reduce and eliminate this social problem. The methodology of this research is based on participatory approaches in which the informants are not only information providers. Instead, they actively participate in the whole process of the research, define the problematic, give the details, identify the influential factors, and eventually intervene in the situation. PAR and Fem PAR methodologies are among the various methodologies used in this research. The research has been conducted in Tehran’s 15th district, in "Hashem Abad" quarter, with the participation of local women. The findings of the research show that factors such as lack of laws supporting abused women, economical issues, drug abuse, and education have an impact on the phenomenon of street harassment.