Psychology and behaviors of teachers who sexually harass students
Most complaints about teachers' behavior tend to center around what is felt to be inappropriate talk in a class or discussion, such as using sexist or sexual references to make a point. However, some teachers can take things to a more extreme degree. Relationships between students and teachers can be often quite intimate and intense as they share common passions and interests. Students are dependent on their teachers' approval for academic success, opportunities, and later career success. They will talk about personal issues, such as problems at home, or with boyfriends/girlfriends. Such closeness and intimacy can blur the professional boundaries and lead people--both school employee and student alike--to step over the line. Martin writes,
"...teachers hold positions of trust. They are expected to design teaching programs and carry out their teaching duties to help their students develop as mature thinkers. This may involve close working relationships in tutorials or laboratories, individual meetings to discuss projects or essays, and more casual occasions for intellectual give and take. For impressionable young students, the boundaries between intellectual development and personal life may become blurred. In this situation, some academics easily move from intellectual to personal to sexual relationships."
A teacher who harasses a student may be doing so because they are experiencing the stress from various personal problems or life traumas, such as marital trouble or divorce, professional crisis, financial difficulties, medical problems, or death of a spouse or child. The behavior can be a symptom of the effects of such stresses, and may stop if the situation changes, or the pressures are removed.