A new study has shown that women who work in science, engineering, technology and math have known for a long time that sexual harassment and abuse in all those fields is quite widespread.

Dr. Kate Clancy had been hearing quite an alarming as well as increasing number of personal stories from women scientists telling their experiences with sexism, harassment and also sexual assault.

In January 2012, the science writer and professor of anthropology at the University of Illinois turned her online column of Scientific American to guest bloggers to narrate their stories.

Almost two-thirds of the women have experienced some form of sexual harassment, including inappropriate sexual remarks, comments about their appearance or even sexist jokes. One in five reported of being the victim of sexual assault and unwanted/non-consensual sexual contact.

Clancy knew the incidences were not isolated and she and several of her colleagues at other institutions namely Katie Hinde at Harvard, Robin Nelson at Skidmore College and Julienne Rutherford of the University of Illinois at Chicago got together and investigated.

Their study, which was published today in the journal Plos One, shows the remote sites which are far from their universities, where scientists perform their most important work, may be difficult and dangerous places for women to work who report experiences ranging from hostility to unwanted sexual advances and even sexual assaults including rape.

Incidences were much more common with the women. About 71% of women reported harassment and 26% reported assault on site compared to the men 41% and 6%, respectively.

Clancy and her colleagues also said that a majority of the women victims were subordinates who often worked directly under their perpetrators while harassment aimed at men mostly came from peers.

According to Clancy, the age and experience level of the women who have reported harassment and abuse can be especially damaging to budding scientists.

Most women never reported their incidents and others who did described dissatisfaction with the eventual outcome of reporting.