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Paper short abstract

This study examines gendered violence in Nigerian institutions, showing its normalization and victims’ silence driven by fear and weak support. Surveys and interviews reveal inadequate institutional responses and the use of repression, denial, and displacement as coping mechanisms.

Paper long abstract

Gendered violence has become a persistent and normalized phenomenon within Nigerian academic institutions. As a result, “enduring in silence” has become the unspoken coping strategy for many victims, largely due to fear of victimization, academic penalties, and sociocultural pressures that discourage disclosure to maintain institutional loyalty. This study investigates the prevalence and forms of gendered violence across Nigerian universities, the extent to which students and staff require stronger protection mechanisms, and the need for comprehensive institutional and legal frameworks to support survivors in reporting such violations confidently. Empirical and descriptive research methods were adopted, data were collected through structured questionnaires administered to 473 students and staff across selected tertiary institutions, as well as private interviews conducted with survivors and key informants to capture lived experiences and contextual insights. The data were analyzed using frequencies, chi-square of independence and charts. Findings reveal that existing institutional structures are grossly inadequate in addressing gendered violence, and prolonged exposure has obscured the severity of its physical, emotional, and academic consequences, often compelling victims to resort to Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytical concepts of repression, denial, and displacement as coping mechanisms. The study concludes that urgent institutional reforms and stronger regulatory policies are essential to effectively confront and reduce gendered violence within Nigerian academic environments.