The Effectiveness of Whistleblowing Systems and Legal Protection for Victims of Sexual Harassment: A Comparative Study of Internal Accountability in Higher Education Institutions in Badung Regency and Denpasar

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_25How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Higher Education Institutions; Internal Accountability and Reporting Intention (VAIN); Legal Protection (PHRAK); Sexual Harassment; Whistleblowing System (WBS)

Abstract

Sexual harassment remains a critical issue in higher education institutions, where underreporting is frequently driven by fear of retaliation, social stigma, and inadequate legal protection for victims and whistleblowers. This study examines the effects of the Effectiveness of the Whistleblowing System (WBS) and Legal Protection and Perceived Safety of Victims/Whistleblowers (PHRAK) on Internal Accountability and Reporting Intention (VAIN) in higher education institutions located in Badung Regency and Denpasar City, Bali. A quantitative approach employing associative and comparative research designs was adopted. Utilizing a structured five-point Likert instrument distributed to academic personnel, the study analyzed primary response data using PLS-SEM (SmartPLS 4) and applied PLS-MGA to compare path relationships across geographical areas. The results indicate that both WBS and PHRAK exert positive and statistically significant effects on VAIN. PHRAK demonstrated the strongest influence, emphasizing that confidentiality, protection against retaliation, and procedural certainty are fundamental in encouraging reporting behavior. The PLS-MGA revealed no statistically significant structural differences between respondents in Badung Regency and Denpasar City, confirming model stability across geographical contexts. These findings provide empirical basis for integrating effective whistleblowing mechanisms with comprehensive legal protection to foster transparent, accountable, and victim-centered university governance.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - I Wayan Adnyana
AU  - I Putu Andika Pratama
AU  - Dewa Ayu Eny Wulandari
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/24
TI  - The Effectiveness of Whistleblowing Systems and Legal Protection for Victims of Sexual Harassment: A Comparative Study of Internal Accountability in Higher Education Institutions in Badung Regency and Denpasar
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Green Tourism Applied Science - Social Applied Science 2026 (ICoSTAS-SAS 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 249
EP  - 258
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_25
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_25
ID  - Adnyana2026
ER  -