Associations between sexual harassment experiences and attitudes toward marriage through social isolation among never married women in Shiraz, Iran

Abstract Marriage represents a central social and cultural institution in Iran, yet shifting gender norms, economic uncertainty, and exposure to social risks such as harassment may shape women’s attitudes toward marriage and life course decisions. This study examined the associations between experiences of sexual harassment and attitudes toward marriage among never-married women in Shiraz, Iran, with a focus on the potential indirect role of social isolation. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 245 never-married women aged 18 years and older in Shiraz, Iran, using a multi-stage cluster sampling procedure. Data were collected using validated self-report questionnaires assessing experiences of sexual harassment, social isolation, and attitudes toward marriage. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, multiple regression analyses, and PROCESS Macro Model 4 with 5,000 bootstrap resamples were used to examine direct and indirect associations among the study variables. Experiences of sexual harassment were negatively associated with attitudes toward marriage (β = -.269, p <.001) and positively associated with social isolation (β =.211, p =.001). Social isolation was also negatively associated with attitudes toward marriage (β = -0.317, p < 0.001). Bootstrap analysis indicated a statistically significant indirect association between sexual harassment experiences and attitudes toward marriage through social isolation (indirect effect = -0.067, 95% bootstrap CI [-.120, -.027]). The findings suggest that experiences of sexual harassment were associated with lower social connectedness and less favorable attitudes toward marriage among never-married women in Shiraz. The study highlights the importance of culturally sensitive interventions aimed at addressing harassment experiences and strengthening social support and connectedness among young women.