As a young adult in today's society, I am aware of the pressures of gender roles that are affecting each and every one of us. They can be as derogatory as saying that women only belong at the house, being a stay-at-home mom, cooking and cleaning all while taking care of the kids. They can also be as harsh as saying that men are not allowed to show emotion, that they must be dominant and show that they have control and power. These gender roles used to be what was the "social norm" but now they are changing. People are realizing that these roles are only used to state what you can and cannot do, and that you should be shamed for trying to break out of the mold. This personally hits home for me because my biological half-sister was ridiculed for going into the Marines. She was personally talked down upon for being a woman and wanting to fight for our country. She was told that she could not succeed because she was a woman and that the military was explicitly for men. Unfortunately, there are even more women out there who are being criticized for their gender and their decision to be in the military. These criticisms can be verbal and some even physical. The prevalence of sexual harassment in the military strikes me as a jab at gender roles, due to certain individuals feelings that they are better than others due to the gender stereotypes that are a part of today's societal mindset.

"Impact of Gender on Reactions to Military Sexual Assault and Harassment" written by Margaret E. Bell, Jessica A. Turchik, and Julie A. Karpenko is an article written to describe the "reasons" behind military sexual assault and harassment and how it differs based on gender. This article also touches on the societal norms set for each gender and how they differ in the military setting. The information and values presented in this article begin with the stereotypes of gender in typical society, but also how they are supposed to be in the military. The article then goes on to state facts in regards to the sexual assault and harassment that is happening and also the reactions and healing process of those who were affected. The authors use multiple sources to back up their claims. However, this article does a great job of equally speaking on both genders, rather than siding with one gender as being the primary victims of the sexual abuse that goes on in the military.

"Combat Deployment is Associated with Sexual Harassment or Sexual Assault in a Large, Female Military Cohort" written by Cynthia A. LeardMann, Amanda Pietrucha, and several others is about the effects of sexual harassment and assault on women. This is a scientific report that includes tables and charts with the data collected from a sample size of women that were deployed in the military. The points brought up in this report include that women who were deployed were at a greater risk for what they call "sexual stressors" due to a high number of factors that have an effect on this. The table showed in the results section includes a list of these factors such as age, education, marital status/history, military branch, occupation, alcohol usage, mental state, stress and prior encounters dealing with sexual pressure. This report, while being scientifically backed up, is biased in the way that it is written specifically on females being the victim. The gender role jab that is between the lines of this report is that men are the "bad guys" doing this to women. The authors of this article are also majority female, so that also gives it a slight biased approach.

"2012 Workplace and Gender Relations Survey of Active Duty Members" published by the Department of Defense contains several pages of statistics in regards to sexual harassment in the military. The survey was returned by 22,792 people and their answers were changed into percentages and shared. The papers include the definitions of "Unwanted Gender-Related Behaviors" and the statistics for "Unwanted Sexual Contact" and "Detailed Experiences" of those who responded to the Unwanted Sexual Contact section. According to the survey, in 2012 6.1% of women experienced unwanted sexual contact while 1.2% of men were affected. These numbers show that women are definitely more susceptible to sexual assault and harassment while in the military. These papers could be biased in the way that someone could have possibly lied about their experience, therefore having faulty statistics. However, with a sample size this large, I do not believe that to be the case because the statistics would insignificantly changed. The Department of Defense is an extremely credible source and these papers are published to show the public the truth, therefore making them reliable and unbiased.

The impact of sexual harassment in the military due to gender roles is slightly difficult to research due to the gender-biased sources. Many articles and reports are favoring the military women as the victims, when in reality both genders are experiencing the sexual assault. However, the articles have been proving to me that women are looked down upon in the military. This was brought to my attention by seeing the statistical numbers of assaulted women compared to men. The gender roles of society are definitely transferred into the military and are causing a problem when it comes to the sexual assaults on either gender.

