Gender-based violence in universities: the urgent challenge of transforming from within

DOI: https://doi.org/10.54674/ess.v37i1.1043
Keywords: Gender violence; university; transformational politics

Abstract

Gender-based violence in the university environment represents a complex and persistent phenomenon that deeply challenges higher education institutions. Beyond their formative and knowledge-generating function, universities are also spaces of coexistence where power relations, structural inequalities, and forms of violence can be subtly or explicitly reproduced. This article, therefore, addresses the urgent challenge of transforming universities from within, recognizing that the eradication of gender-based violence implies a profound revision of institutional practices, organizational cultures, and symbolic frameworks that perpetuate inequality. Based on a critical and multidisciplinary analysis, the obstacles, tensions, and opportunities faced by universities on their way to true gender equity are explored. The analysis of gender violence in the university environment shows that it is not a matter of isolated events or simple individual deviations but a structural phenomenon deeply rooted in the patriarchal logics that organize institutional functioning. Despite the implementation of institutional protocols and policies, progress has been largely insufficient and, in some cases, simulated. The measures adopted tend to focus on the administrative management of the conflict and the protection of institutional image, rather than on a real transformation of the structures that make violence possible. In this context, it is urgent to move from a merely formal response to a policy of structural transformation.

Author Biographies

Josefina Guzmán Acuna, Autonomous University of Tamaulipas, Victoria, Mexico.

Academic and researcher at the Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas, where she is a full-time professor in the School of Education Sciences and Humanities. Since 2007, she has been recognized in the National System of Researchers at level 1, valid until 2029. From the academic feminism she has developed and promoted, she has developed lines of research mainly in the field of gender studies and violence against women, leading research projects with external funding and various publications: books, book chapters, and articles. Invited speaker and lecturer in various national and international forums.

Blanca Lizbeth Inguanzo Arias, University of Guadalajara (UdeG), Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.

D. in Higher Education Management. She is a professor and researcher at the University of Guadalajara and a member of the National System of Researchers of CONAHCYT. She has made academic stays at the University of Montreal and the University of Granada. She is part of the international working group “Ciencia social móvil y politizada,” CLACSO; of the Red de Estudios sobre Instituciones Educativas (RESIedu) and a member of “Desde mujeres,” an intergenerational platform for visibility and accompaniment of women social scientists. Her research focuses on educational policy, research management, knowledge mobilization, and gender studies.

Teresa de Jesús Guzmán Acuña, Autonomous University of Tamaulipas, Victoria, Mexico.

D. in International Education, a master's degree in Higher Education, and a bachelor's degree in Business Administration. Full-time professor of the Faculty of Education Sciences and Humanities of the Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas. Leader of the Consolidated Academic Body Educational Policy, Administration, and Management. Desirable PRODEP profile. Member of the National System of Researchers Level 1. Recent book publications: Mechanisms of production and socialization of knowledge (2020). Perception of high school students on the national strategy for the prevention of teenage pregnancy (2021). The 21st-century pandemic and its impacts on college women (2024). Impacts of COVID-19, post-pandemic, and women (2024).

Published
2025-06-30
How to Cite
Guzman Acuña, J., Inguanzo Arias, B., & Guzmán Acuña, T. de J. (2025). Gender-based violence in universities: the urgent challenge of transforming from within. Higher Education and Society Journal (ESS), 37(1), 198-213. https://doi.org/10.54674/ess.v37i1.1043
Issue
Vol 37 No 1 (2025): Gender and intersectionality at university: Inequalities, policies and transformations
Section
Articles Thematic Dossier

Copyright (c) 2025 Josefina Guzman Acuña, Blanca Inguanzo Arias, Teresa de Jesús Guzmán Acuña

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