Reflection Piece on the “Big Idea”: Keeping the US Military Gender-Sensitive via Raising Awareness on Sexual Assault and Harassment
General Overview
The United States (US) military is perhaps the most prominent of its kind in the world in terms of its excellent organization, possession of superior technology and vast coverage. However, one could not completely adjudge the US military as one that has a perfect setup. Like any other organization, the US military is no stranger to controversial attacks against its reputation. One of the most scathing problems the US military is currently trying to remedy is the problem of sexual assault and harassment. There is proof that the US military is not ignoring the problem of sexual assault and harassment among its personnel – as aptly shown by the widespread media coverage problems related to that receive. Nevertheless, the continued existence of cases involving sexual assault and harassment in the US military makes it a problem to reckon in the greater interest of gender sensitivity (Firestone, 2005).
The “big idea” gradually produced and developed for this reflection piece mainly concerns the problem of sexual assault and harassment in the US military. While the big idea does not claim to have the definite answer that would completely prevent sexual assault and harassment cases in the US military from transpiring, it nevertheless advocates the value of raising awareness towards the main issue at hand (Firestone, 2005; Lawrence & Penaloza, 2013). The big idea recognizes that the objective of raising awareness on the issue of sexual harassment and awareness requires a multifaceted set of methods and procedures utilizing different mediums, namely:
- Secondary school classroom discussions related to the US military, subject to the curricula of handling academic departments (Turchik & Wilson, 2010)
- Promotional materials shown and distributed via print resources, television, radio and the Internet, particularly in the form of infomercials, small pamphlets and informative messages containing calls for action, among many others (Campbell & Raja, 2005; Turchik & Wilson, 2010)
The material objective of the big idea, which is to form a centralized consortium of organizations seeking to promote the value of gender sensitivity in the US military by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment, centers on the following remedies:
- Protection of rights and provision of support for sexual assault and harassment victims in the US military (Turchik & Wilson, 2010)
- Civilian-military cooperation (Campbell & Raja, 2005)
- Development and promotion of educational and training mechanisms against sexual assault and harassment (Turchik & Wilson, 2010)
- Prevention of sexual assault and harassment cases and accountability of offenders (Turchik & Wilson, 2010; Wolfe et al., 1998)
Given the foregoing encapsulation of the characteristics of the big idea on keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment, this reflection piece does not seek to provide any further elaborations apart from its main purpose of outlining the development process the author of the big idea has undertaken. Thus, this reflection piece presents the following elements – learning reflections of the author, learning developments focused on the writing process, skills developed by the author, realizations from exposure to other people concerned with the production and development of the big idea and the effects of feedback in the revision process the big idea and its related materials have gone through. Conclusively – and without any further elaboration, the big idea on establishing an awareness-raising consortium condemning sexual assault and harassment in the US military stands as an effective measure towards curbing such cases in favor of maintaining gender sensitivity within a highly dignified institution (Turchik & Wilson, 2010).
As a thinker, the author has enabled himself to become more open to the rich variety of the literature he used in supporting the rational foundations of the big idea he has produced and developed. After all, the mere mention of sexual assault and harassment alone already attracts unwanted attention; open-mindedness has become a requisite for the author to become capable of analyzing all sides to the controversy. In that respect, the author has found open-mindedness as an invaluable trait he has developed in producing and developing the big idea keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment. Moreover, the writer also acknowledged the importance of critical thinking in terms of composing the kinds of recommendations suitable for the big idea, given the multitude of recommendations available in the present literature on sexual assault and harassment in the US military. With the end goal of protecting gender sensitivity in the US military via awareness raising triggered by a consortium of concerned organizations in mind, the author had to choose from a substantial amount of materials from the present literature on the subject matter. As a thinker, the author has become generally more knowledgeable on the problem of sexual assault and harassment in the US military (Firestone, 2005; Turchik & Wilson, 2010).
Learning Developments Focused on the Writing Process
In the process of writing on the big idea on keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment, the author has put forth his prior and researched knowledge on the subject matter. Verily, for every research undertaking, one has to exhort his prior knowledge first and use researched knowledge to support or dispute it. Such is part of the refinement process of writing on a topic that requires heavy research such as the big idea on keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment. In the process of writing, the author learned the importance of structuring the big idea in such a way that readers would have a clear idea of its purpose from the onset. Complicating matters pertaining to the structure of the big idea would only lead readers to confusion, in turn leading them to become skeptical of the rationale behind it. For that, coherency is a virtue the author has sought to employ in undergoing the writing process for the big idea. The author sought to contain himself on the general purpose of his study – to stop sexual assault and harassment in the US military. With the presumption that the problem involved is a harmful one to the integrity of the US military, the author went on to research on the subject matter remedially. Although the author admitted to being overwhelmed in the data-gathering process due to the vastness of the literature on sexual assault and harassment in the US military, he nevertheless focused on his general purpose in striving to create a coherent output representing his big idea (Turchik & Wilson, 2010).
Skills Developed by the Author
The production and development of the big idea on keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment has enabled the author to develop several skills beyond the thinking and writing processes. It is important to note that the author did not necessarily take the construction of the big idea initially as a brand-new challenge. Indeed, the author has applied much of his abilities in thinking and writing in creating the output representing the big idea. As previously mentioned, the author has maximized his utilization of thinking and writing skills in order to make a coherent system of information supporting the big idea. The controversial nature of the topic has prompted the author to do so. The objective of the big idea to enable the formation of an awareness-raising consortium of organizations concerned with issues on sexual assault and harassment in the US military is one that requires a strong research foundation based on the quality of the literature and the appropriateness of the writing structure and style involved. With respect to the foregoing, the author has developed a particular skill applicable to any kind of research endeavors – comparing and assessing materials from a particular body of literature based on quality. In finding reliable sources from the literature on the issue of sexual assault and harassment in the US military, the author sought to filter the good from the bad ones based on the presence of unjustified bias, the quality and quantity of sources used in every potential source and the quality of the writing style employed. Another thing the author has learned and developed when he was in the process of creating the big idea is the fortification of his patience. After all, it is important for the author to have a very patient disposition in dealing with such a highly tedious activity as getting involved in rigorous research and writing sessions for creating the output representing the big idea (Firestone, 2005).
Realizations from Exposure to Other People
In gathering information for supporting the big idea, the author has understood the need to use sources beyond that of the existing literature. In that case, the author made it a point to ask resource persons whose contributions could greatly benefit the creation of the big idea on keeping the US military gender-sensitive by raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment. The author, who worked within the parameters of the time constraints he has in working on the big idea, sought for the comments of immediate persons who may have a say on the general issue on sexual assault and harassment and cases involving such in the US military. Although the statements the author he has gathered from the people were casually made and were actually immaterial to the composition of the output representing the big idea, those have nevertheless reflected the general sentiment present in the literature the author has used. Specifically, the people asked by the author on the issue of sexual assault and harassment in the US military expressed their dismay over the integrity of the institution in question; many of them said that it continues to herald a patriarchal tradition that is somewhat not in tune with the gender-conscious status quo. Others expressed their concern that the US military may continue to be unfriendly towards women planning to enter it, considering that several reports on sexual assault and harassment have involved victims that are women. Overall, the people who casually interacted with the author on the issue surrounding the big idea expressed their support for raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment issues in the US military (Turchik & Wilson, 2010).
Effects of Feedback in the Revision Process
The feedback provided by peers and the instructor of the author were generally constructive in nature. The instructor, in particular, has enabled the author to become more creative and idealistic in thinking about factors that would build the big idea without being too unrealistic, with borders defined by the existing literature. Moreover, reviews from peers and the instructor have helped the author achieve greater clarity in his output representing the big idea. Currently, the author is confident that the big idea his output represents contains a coherent set of factors centered on the objective of raising awareness on sexual assault and harassment cases in the US military via the ultimate formation of an organizational consortium condemning such cases in a centralized manner (Turchik & Wilson, 2010).
References
Campbell, R., & Raja, S. (2005). The sexual assault and secondary victimization of female veterans: Help-seeking experiences with military and civilian social systems. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 29(1), 97-106.
Firestone, J. (2005). Sexual harassment in the U.S. military: Individualized and environmental contexts. Armed Forces & Society, 21(1), 25-43.
Lawrence, Q., & Penaloza, M. (2013, March 21). Sexual violence victims say military justice system ‘broken’. NPR.org. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2013/03/21/174840895/sexual-violence-victims-say-military-justice-system-is-broken
Turchik, J., & , Wilson, S. (2010). Sexual assault in the U.S. military: A review of the literature and recommendations for the future. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 15(4), 267-277.
Wolfe, J., Sharkansky, E., Read, J., Dawson, R., Martin, J., & Ouimette, P. (1998). Sexual harassment and assault as predictors of PTSD symptomatology among U.S. female Persian Gulf War military personnel. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 13(1), 40-57.
