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Sex Work Among Students of Higher Education: A Survey-Based, Cross-Sectional Study

DOI:10.1007/s10508-014-0476-y
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Felix Betzler at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Felix Betzler
Stephan Köhler at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Stephan Köhler
Ludwig Schlemm at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Ludwig Schlemm
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IntroductionWithin the recent years, the phenomenon of sex work among students appeared in various media channels (Chrisafis, 2008; Dixon, 2012). Several studies have investigated sex work among high school students in Norway (Pedersen & Hegna, 2003), Sweden (Svedin & Priebe, 2007), and Canada (Lavoie, Thibodeau, Gagne, & Hebert, 2010). Pedersen and Hegna found that 1.4 % of the participants (N = 10,828, age of 14-17) sold sex, three times as many boys as girls. The adolescents selling sex were frequently involved in delinquent behaviors and substance use. The study conducted by Svedin and Priebe provided similar results, reporting that 1.8 % of the boys and 1.0 % of the girls (N = 4339) had sold sex. Selling sex was associated with having an immigrant background, higher level of unemployment in the family, and studying a practical/vocational program. Being involved in selling sex was associated with poorer mental health, weekly use of alcohol, and antisocial behaviors. A higher preval ...
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Sex Work Among Students of Higher Education: A Survey-Based,
Cross-Sectional Study
Felix Betzer •Stephan Ko
¨hler •Ludwig Schlemm
Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014
Introduction
Within the recent years, the phenomenon of sex work among
students appeared in various media channels (Chrisafis, 2008;
Dixon, 2012). Several studies have investigated sex work among
high school students in Norway (Pedersen & Hegna, 2003),
Sweden (Svedin & Priebe, 2007), and Canada (Lavoie, Thibo-
deau, Gagne, & Hebert, 2010). Pedersen and Hegna found that
1.4 % of the participants (N=10,828, age of 14–17) sold sex,
three times as many boys as girls. The adolescents selling sex
were frequently involved in delinquent behaviors and substance
use. The study conducted by Svedin and Priebe provided similar
results, reporting that 1.8 % of the boys and 1.0 % of the girls
(N=4339) had sold sex. Selling sex was associated with having
an immigrant background, higher level of unemployment in the
family, and studying a practical/vocational program. Being
involved in selling sex was associated with poorer mental health,
weekly use of alcohol, and antisocial behaviors. A higher prev-
alence of sex work among high school students was reported in the
study by Lavoie et al., investigating a sample of 815 Quebecoise
high school students at the age of 15–18 years. According to this
study, 3 % of the participants reported having bought, and 4 %
reported having sold sexual services, predominantly girls. History
of sexual abuse, casual sex, and the number of stressful life events
were related to the sale of sex.
Concerning students of higher education, only few data exist.
Roberts, Bergstro
¨m,andLaRooy(2007) conducted a cross-
sectional survey of 130 students with a mean age of 22.8 years.
This study did not directly ask about experie nces in sex work, but
it asked if students knew of other students engaged in sex work. It
was found that over 10 % of participants knew of students
engaged in sex work. Poor psychological well-being, drinking
problems, and financial circumstances were associated with sex
work. It has not yet been investigated whether the prevalence of
student sex workers in higher education is in the same order as in
high school students. The circumstances of life, the social envi-
ronment, as well as the way of financing oneself are different for a
student of higher education compared to those for a high school
student. Therefore, we conducted a survey-based, cross-sec-
tional study among students of higher education in Berlin.
Method
Participants
A sample of 4,386 completed questionnaires from students from
various universities in Berlin was evaluated. Participants’ mean
age was 24.4 years (SD =3.7); 44.1 % of the participants were
female, and 13.6 % did not specify their gender. On average,
participants were in the 5.7th semester of their studies (SD =4.0).
Concerning their relationship status, 40.7 % were in a relation-
ship, 30.3 % were single, 3.7 % were married, 0.3 % were
divorced, and 23.9 % did not specify their relationship status.
Measures
We designed an online questionnaire containing general infor-
mation and questions about demographics, financial situation,
F. Betzer (&)S. Ko
¨hler
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy,
Charite
´Universita
¨tsmedizin Berlin, Campus Charite
´Mitte
(CC15), Charite
´platz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany
e-mail: felix.betzler@charite.de
L. Schlemm
Department of Neurology, Charite
´Universita
¨tsmedizin Berlin,
Berlin, Germany
123
Arch Sex Behav
DOI 10.1007/s10508-014-0476-y
personality, substance use, and sexuality. The questionnaire was
distributed via the mailing lists of Berlin’s major universities.
For a personality test, the 15-item Big Five Inventory was used
(Lang, John, Ludtke, Schupp, & Wagner, 2011). All scales in the
questionnaire were designed using 5-, 7-, or 10-point Likert items.
Data Analysis
Cross-tabulations with v
2
or Fisher’s exact test were used to
compare proportions between two groups (students who were
engaged in sex work to students who were not). Non-parametric
Mann–Whitney Utests were used to compare medians of not
normally distributed continuous data between the two groups.
Normal distribution was evaluated using Kolmogorov–Smir-
nov tests. Data are presented as percentage values or medians
with interquartile range (IQR).
Results
Seven percent of the participants indicated that they are or have
been involved in sex work (involved in sex work: N=227; not
involved in sex work: N=2998; not answered or dropped out:
N=1161). Most students involved in sex work replied that they
pursued prostitution in the narrow sense, meaning sexual inter-
course in direct exchange for money or escort services, which
may include sexual intercourse (Table 1). Thirty-three percent of
the students who were actually not involved in sex work could
imagine doing so; this percentage was summed up from all
participants who replied either‘‘yes’’(5 %) or‘‘yes, given certain
circumstances’’(28 %). The students were able to enter an
amount of money per hour at which they would be willing to
engage in sex work. The median amount was 100€(IQR =110).
Financial Situation
Sex workers received significantly less financial support from
their families than other students (35.2 vs. 59.3 %), v
2
(1, N=
3127) =47.3, p\.001. Also, among those that received any
support, the amount differed significantly between sex workers
(N=64, 300€/month, IQR =300) and other students (N=1526,
400€/month, IQR =365), p=.025. Sex workers received fewer
scholarships (2.3 vs. 10.4 %), v
2
(1, N=3127) =14.6, p\.001,
and were more often in debt (28.9 vs. 17.3 %), v
2
(1, N=2940) =
11.3, p\.001. In addition, sex workers received fewer student
loans than other students (14.6 vs. 20 %), v
2
(1, N=3127) =
3.8, p=.05. However, the overall income turned out not to be
significantly lower for sex working students (N=121, 800€/
month, IQR =525) compared with other students (N=2467,
700€/month, IQR =350), p=.201.
Sexual Orientation and STDs
A total of 87 % of students who were not engaged in sex work
self-reported as heterosexual versus 54 % in the group of sex
working students, v
2
(1, N=2909) =110.6, p\.001.
Five percent of the non-sex workers versus 13 % of the sex
workers described themselves as homosexual, and 8 versus 33 %
as bisexual. Students involved in sex work (N=123) had sig-
nificantly more sexual partners in the last 3 months than other
students (N=2799): 3.0 (IQR =7) versus 1.0 (IQR =0), p\
.001.
The group of sex workers showed a significantly higher prev-
alence of sexual transmitted diseases (STD) compared with
other students (28.8 vs. 8.5 %), v
2
(1, N=2842) =16.9, p\.001.
Substance Use
In any drug examined (marijuana, amphetamines, cocaine, etc.),
except for alcohol, sex workers showed a substantially higher
use than other students (e.g., cocaine: 28 vs. 9 %), v
2
(1, N=
2915) =46, p\.001.Concerning alcohol consumption, the rela-
tion was inverted (90 vs. 94 %), v
2
(1, N=3012) =4.3, p=.04.
Personality Traits
Agreeableness was significantly lower in the group of sex
working students: In this group (N=135), students had a median
of 5.0 (IQR =2) compared to a median of 5.3 (IQR =1.3) for the
other students (N=2660), p=.033.
Discussion
This study provided the first estimation of sex work among stu-
dents of higher education and a first psychosocial characterization
Table 1 Modalities of sex work within the group of sex working students
Modality of sex work Yes (%) Yes (n)No(n) Missing (n)
Prostitution in the narrow sense 21.6 49 93 82
Escort service including sex. Intercourse 18.5 42 109 76
Striptease, webcam or phone sex 11.0 25 126 76
Escort service excluding sex. Intercourse 9.7 22 129 76
Other 9.7 22 129 76
Arch Sex Behav
123
of this group. The prevalence of students being or having been
involved in sex work was found to be 7 %. The prevalence we
found was several times higher than those found in other studies.
Pedersen and Hegna (2003) reported a prevalence of 1.4 % in
Norway;Lavoieetal.(2010) reported 4 % in Canada, both for
high school students. In a cross-sectional sample of undergradu-
ates (N=130) in England, 10 % of all participants knew of stu-
dents who were engaged in sex work (Roberts et al., 2007).
There are several factors that could have had an impact on the
relatively high prevalence we found. The likelihood of sex work
increases with age, having a maximum in the late twenties (aver-
age age of prostitutes in Germany, 28 years, Robert-Koch-Insti-
tut, 2008). Another explanation might be the fact that we focused
on a metropolis like Berlin, while the above-mentioned studies
examined mostly whole areas. It is noticeable that the actual
prevalence diverged quite strongly from the percentage of stu-
dents who could imagine pursuing sex work: 7 versus 33 %. One
has to take into account that the 33 % assemble from 4.7 % of
students who simply responded‘‘yes’’and those who responded
with‘‘yes, under certain conditions’’(28.3 %). This implies that,
for many students, this thought remains rather theoretical than
actual praxis. Surprisingly, the above-mentioned conditions were
just on an amount of money with an average of 261€per
hour offered.
Financial Situation
We could verify that sex workers received significantly less finan-
cial support than other students. They received less financial
support in total and also had lower rates of scholarships or other
financial support. These results confirm the findings of Roberts
et al. (2007) and suggest that students are participating in the sex
industry as a consequence of financial hardship. Sex work results
in a higher income compared with poorly paid jobs and therefore
allows more time for students to devote to study (Lantz, 2004;
Moffat & Peters, 2004). This is also in line with findings of sex
work in adolescents where there was a clear association between a
higher level of unemployment/financial difficulties and sex work
(Svedin & Priebe, 2007; Tyler & Johnson, 2006).
Sexual Orientation
A vast majority of students in the non-sex worker group was
heterosexual (87 %) with 5 and 8 % homosexual or bisexual,
respectively, while a smaller percentage of sex-working stu-
dentsidentified as heterosexual (54 %) with 33 and 13 % homo-
sexualand bisexual,respectively.For homosexualmen, thereis
research underlining a new paradigm that respects personal
motivations forsex work (Bimbi, 2007). These motivations are
the view of sex work as a job and a valid source of income.
Svedin and Priebe (2007) also argued that it is possible that
young men who are trying to find out if their sexual disposition
is of a homosexual nature have difficulties in doing so among
their peers and are, therefore, left to seek more older men, with
whom they can experiment. This may also lead to more offers to
sellsex. We also could verify thatstudents whowere engagedin
sex worksufferedmore frequently fromSTDs (28.8vs. 8.5 % in
the non-sex worker group), which is not surprising and is in line
with several previous findings that sex work dramatically
increases the risk of STDs (Baral et al., 2012; Miralles,
Mardarescu, & Sherr, 2013).
Substance Use
Substance use was significantly higher in the group of sex work-
ing students as compared to other students, except for alcohol.
This was the opposite of the finding by Svedin and Priebe (2007),
who found that adolescents who sold sex had a significantly
higher consumption of alcohol than in the control group. In line
with our findings, the use of illegal drugs was 2–6 times more
common for sex workers. Also, Roberts et al. (2007) reported that
22 % of their participants knew students engaging in drug dealing
and 3–4 % reported knowing students who were involved in pros-
titution to support themselves financially. However, it remains
unclear whether drug or alcohol use are precursors or conse-
quences of selling sex (Svedin & Priebe, 2007).
Personality
Sex working students were less agreeable than students not
involved in sex work, the only significant difference in our per-
sonality data. Again, it remains questionable what are precursors
or consequences of selling sex. A bidirectional influence may be
possible: it may seem intuitive that someone who takes the deci-
sion to engage in sex work has to bring along a certain type of
personality, in order to face difficult situations with clients and to
draw clear lines. Also, it may seem as intuitive that those kinds of
situations which sex workers usually have to face do not pass
someone’s attitude and behavior without leaving certain marks or
changes which may become apparent in lower agreeableness
scores. Our data do not provide a basis to answer this question.
Limitations
Due to some methodological limitations, our data must be inter-
preted with caution. We cannot provide an exact response rate,
since we do not precisely know how many students were reached
by our questionnaire (conservative estimate would yield a
response rate of roughly over 10 %) and may result in a relevant
selection bias. The participants mayalsohavebeenmoreopento
the topic of sex work resulting in a false high prevalence.
Acknowledgments The first two authors share first authorship.
Arch Sex Behav
123
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Full-text available
  • Aug 2021
A sugar relationship is a monetary-based liaison between a wealthier older and an attractive younger person, the latter receiving expensive gifts or financial compensation in exchange for her or his sexual companionship. Attachment, motivation, and self-esteem are all integrative parts of adult romantic and sexual relationships. There is relatively little empirical research on the psychological correlates of accepting attitudes toward sugar relationships. The research aimed to explore the relationship among the acceptance of sugar relationship, attachment (avoidance and anxiety), motivation (extrinsic and intrinsic), and self-esteem. A total of 2,409 Hungarian adults including 1,980 younger participants (1,804 women, 175 men, mean age = 21.17) and 429 older participants (290 men, 138 women, mean age = 48.86) completed an online test battery comprising four self-report measures. In the younger subsample, the only significant association obtained for the acceptance of sugar relationships was its positive correlation with extrinsic motivation. In the older subsample, the acceptance of sugar relationships was positively correlated with all tested variables except self-esteem. Subsequent analysis revealed that attachment avoidance but not anxiety moderated the associations between the variables. Among younger participants, the negative effect of self-esteem and intrinsic motivation on accepting sugar relationships decreased with increasing attachment avoidance. Among older participants, the positive effect of extrinsic motivation on accepting sugar relationships decreased with increasing attachment avoidance. The results are discussed with regard to relational and sexual goals associated with adult attachment orientations.
Transactional sex among young people in Switzerland: A cross-sectional study
Article
Background: The aim of this research was to determine the prevalence and characteristics of youths having ever exchanged sex and to assess if there were differences depending on whether they had done it once or several times. We also investigated what they exchanged sex for and their relationship with the last person they did it with. Methods: A cross-sectional national survey was carried out in Switzerland in 2017 among young adults. The 5175 participants (51% males, mean age 26.3years) who answered the question 'Have you ever received something or obtained an advantage in exchange for a sexual act?' were divided into three groups: Never (96.8%), Once (1.5%) and Several (1.7%). Results: In the multivariate analysis, compared to the Never group, those in the Once group were significantly more likely to be males, to have a poor mental health, to be non-exclusively heterosexual and to have had 10+ lifetime sexual partners. Those in the Several group reported the same characteristics, but were also more likely to be younger at first sexual contact, to have their parents not living together, to report a lower socioeconomic status and a history of sexual abuse, and to have ever sent sexual images/videos of themselves. They were also less satisfied with their financial situation. Conclusions: Results indicate that transactional sex is a reality for some youths in Switzerland, and health professionals dealing with them should include this question in their sexual anamnesis. From a public health perspective, sexual education and prevention campaigns should include this phenomenon.
Toxic Positivity?
Article
  • Jul 2021
This article examines how, in the public eye, the hooker became happy. Extending Sara Ahmed’s concept of the “happiness duty,” the article explicates how sex positivity has inaugurated “respectability” politics within sex worker social movements. The author argues that sex worker social movements have sought to change public debates about commercial sex, vis-à-vis an antistereotype strategy that reimagined the sex worker as a sex-positive feminist, distinguished less by her critical politics of pleasure and more by the implication that she freely chooses and finds happiness in her work. Emphasizing happiness has allowed sex workers to become legible as political actors within preexisting terms of liberal citizenship. This strategy, however, has effectively affirmed the cultural logics of the “rescue industry” and poses significant challenges to cross-class, -racial, and -age solidarity among those in the sex trades. To make this argument, the author analyzes original oral history interviews and sex worker cultural production associated with the Lusty Lady theater. A historically significant and recently closed commercial sex franchise located in San Francisco and Seattle, the Lusty Lady serves as a unique access point for understanding sex worker social movements, as it was a central institution in sex worker counterpublics. This article enhances analyses of sex worker social movements by considering how sex positivity has both cohered and constrained sex worker social movements.
Análisis de las Actitudes de las y los Adolescentes hacia la Prostitución y los Motivos para su consumo
Article
  • Jul 2021
La prostitución es una fenómeno social complejo pero escasamente investigado. El impacto social del tema señala la importancia de abordarlo desde etapas tempranas, como la adolescencia, por lo que, este estudio tiene como objetivo evaluar las creencias de las y los adolescentes sobre diferentes motivos para el consumo de prostitución, y en qué medida éstos predicen sus actitudes al respecto. La muestra fue de 615 adolescentes de centros públicos y concertados de la provincia de Alicante. Se utiliza un cuestionario ad-hoc de Motivos para el Consumo de Prostitución (Martin-Aragón, Terol, Domínguez y López-Andújar, 2019) y la Escala de Actitudes hacia la Prostitución (Levin y Peled, 2011, adaptada por Brotons, Martin-Aragón y Terol, 2016). Los resultados muestran que los chicos frente a las chicas presentan mayor acuerdo con los motivos para el consumo de prostitución, y consideran en mayor medida la prostitución como una elección personal. Estos resultados muestran la necesidad de sensibilizar a las y los adolescentes en el fenómeno de la prostitución para facilitar el cambio de un sistema de relaciones de género basadas en el sexismo, la violencia y la dominación masculina.
Students, sex work and negotiations of stigma in the UK and Australia
Article
Full-text available
How stigma is negotiated by female university students working in the sex industry remains under-researched and is limited to the context of erotic dancing. This article combines data collected in the UK and Australia with a total of 14 student sex workers and expands the scope by including individuals working in legal brothels, as independent escorts, webcammers and erotic dancers. Findings reveal that the use of the internet offered some women protection from discrimination, while at the same time exposing others to ‘new’ and intensified forms of stigma; which required alternative strategies to negate the negative effects. Despite the diverse nature of the sex industry, regardless of the sector, women in both countries were similar in their approach to sex work and their response to stigma. Given their relatively ‘respectable’ social standing, students were able to claim ‘respectability’ not available to all. Some women also shared an increased capacity to live openly as sex workers while simultaneously considering their engagement in the industry to be temporary. Rather than living a double life, respondents aspired to a singular, authentic selfhood. Close relationships were built with co-workers and many women felt a strong sense of rootedness within sex-worker communities, with sex work becoming an important part of their identity.
Zum Infektionsstatus von Prostituierten unter Berücksich-tigung sozialmedizinischer Aspekte
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2008
Ergebnisse einer Studie in Lübeck In der norddeutschen Großstadt Lübeck (210.000 Einwohner) wurde in Zusammen-arbeit von Gesundheitsamt, niedergelassenen Frauenärzten und Universi täts institu-ten eine Studie durchgeführt, die das Ziel hatte, den Infek tionsstatus von Prostituier-ten zu ermitteln. Untersucht wurden 110 Prostituierte, die das Gesundheits amt im Rahmen einer STD-Sprechstunde (sexually transmitted diseases, STD) auf suchten. Zum Vergleich wurde dieselbe Anzahl gleich altriger Frauen aus der Routineklien-tel gynäkologischer Fachpraxen rekrutiert. Prostituierte sind aufgrund ihrer gesellschaftlichen Position, sozialer Proble me und erhöhter Exposition besonders gefährdet, sich mit einer sexuell übertrag-baren Krankheit zu infizieren und nicht adäquat behandelt zu werden. Sie kön-nen damit als Reservoir und Überträger von STD nicht nur sich, sondern auch andere gefährden. Im Zuge der Osterweiterung der EU und gesteigerter Mobilität kommen zu-nehmend ausländische, insbesondere osteuropäische Prostituierte nach Deutsch-land. Sprachprobleme, ein vergleichsweise schlechterer Gesundheitsstatus, Wis-sens defizite in Bezug auf sexuell übertragbare Krankheiten und Präventions-möglichkeiten sowie ein oftmals unzureichender Krankenversicherungsstatus stellen für das öffentliche Gesundheitssystem eine Herausforderung dar. Beispielsweise scheint bei der Zunahme der Syphilis unter Heterosexuellen nach einer Untersuchung des RKI vor allem " die Globalisierung der Prostitu-tion, d. h. ein steigender Anteil aus dem Ausland stammender Sexarbeiterinnen mit schlechtem Zu gang zum medizinischen Versorgungssystem und geringe-ren Durchsetzungsmöglichkeiten gegenüber den Wünschen ihrer Freier nach ungeschütztem Geschlechtsverkehr " eine wichtige Rolle zu spielen. Als bedeu-tendste ausländische Infektionsregion wird Osteuropa genannt. 2
Short assessment of the Big Five: Robust across survey methods except telephone interviewing
Article
Full-text available
We examined measurement invariance and age-related robustness of a short 15-item Big Five Inventory (BFI-S) of personality dimensions, which is well suited for applications in large-scale multidisciplinary surveys. The BFI-S was assessed in three different interviewing conditions: computer-assisted or paper-assisted face-to-face interviewing, computer-assisted telephone interviewing, and a self-administered questionnaire. Randomized probability samples from a large-scale German panel survey and a related probability telephone study were used in order to test method effects on self-report measures of personality characteristics across early, middle, and late adulthood. Exploratory structural equation modeling was used in order to test for measurement invariance of the five-factor model of personality trait domains across different assessment methods. For the short inventory, findings suggest strong robustness of self-report measures of personality dimensions among young and middle-aged adults. In old age, telephone interviewing was associated with greater distortions in reliable personality assessment. It is concluded that the greater mental workload of telephone interviewing limits the reliability of self-report personality assessment. Face-to-face surveys and self-administrated questionnaire completion are clearly better suited than phone surveys when personality traits in age-heterogeneous samples are assessed.
What Do We Know about the Situation of Women Living with HIV in Europe?
Article
  • Jun 2013
At present, women represent approximately one-third of new diagnoses of HIV in Europe – most are infected by heterosexual transmission. Some specific populations of women, such as migrants, sex workers and those who are intravenous drug users, may be at increased risk of HIV infection. Women living with HIV face a range of intersecting situations and challenges distinct from those faced by men. The most familiar of these is pregnancy and motherhood; however, family and social situations will also be different for women compared with men, and can affect how individuals access care and manage their disease. The stigma of HIV can be a particular problem for women in many communities. Improved surveillance of HIV and increased study of the situations facing women living with HIV will help to identify improved strategies to support the care of this patient population.
Burden of HIV among female sex workers in low-income and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Article
  • Mar 2012
Female sex workers are a population who are at heightened risk of HIV infection secondary to biological, behavioural, and structural risk factors. However, three decades into the HIV pandemic, understanding of the burden of HIV among these women remains limited. We aimed to assess the burden of HIV in this population compared with that of other women of reproductive age. We searched PubMed, Embase, Global Health, SCOPUS, PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature), Web of Science, and POPLine for studies of female sex workers in low-income and middle-income countries published between Jan 1, 2007, and June 25, 2011. Studies of any design that measured the prevalence or incidence of HIV among female sex workers, even if sex workers were not the main focus of the study, were included. Meta-analyses were done with the Mantel-Haenszel method with a random-effects model characterising an odds ratio for the prevalence of HIV among female sex workers compared with that for all women of reproductive age. Of 434 selected articles and surveillance reports, 102 were included in the analyses, representing 99,878 female sex workers in 50 countries. The overall HIV prevalence was 11·8% (95% CI 11·6-12·0) with a pooled odds ratio for HIV infection of 13·5 (95% CI 10·0-18·1) with wide intraregional ranges in the pooled HIV prevalence and odds ratios for HIV infection. In 26 countries with medium and high background HIV prevalence, 30·7% (95% CI 30·2-31·3; 8627 of 28,075) of sex workers were HIV-positive and the odds ratio for infection was 11·6 (95% CI 9·1-14·8). Although data characterising HIV risk among female sex workers is scarce, the burden of disease is disproportionately high. These data suggest an urgent need to scale up access to quality HIV prevention programmes. Considerations of the legal and policy environments in which sex workers operate and actions to address the important role of stigma, discrimination, and violence targeting female sex workers is needed. The World Bank, UN Population Fund.
Buying and Selling Sex in Québec Adolescents: A Study of Risk and Protective Factors
Article
This study examined the exchange of sexual services for compensation (e.g., money, drugs, alcohol) in high school students. The sale of sex in young people from nonclinical samples has been the subject of recent studies, but buying such services has received far less attention. This study described these two phenomena and associated factors within a nonclinical sample of 815 high school students (M = 15.86 years) from Québec. According to our results, 3% of these youth reported having bought and 4% reported having sold such services in their lifetime. More girls were involved in selling sexual services and more boys were involved in buying them. Young people generally disapproved of prostitution. Logistic regressions revealed that attitudes in support of prostitution, history of sexual abuse, casual sex, and the number of stressful life events were related to the sale of sex. Furthermore, observing sexualized social activities and exhibiting approving attitudes towards prostitution were associated with buying sexual services.
Sex Work and Students: an Exploratory Study
Article
  • Nov 2007
Available evidence suggests that changes in the funding of higher education have led to some students entering the sex industry in order to make ends meet. The current study comprises a sample of undergraduates (N = 130) in the south of England, who completed a cross‐sectional survey of their financial circumstances, health, psychological well‐being, substance use and lifestyle. A response rate of 74% was obtained. Data indicated that over 10% of all respondents knew of students engaged in sex work (defined as prostitution, escorting, lap dancing or stripping) in order to support themselves financially. Poor psychological well‐being, drinking problems and financial circumstances were associated with sex work, and although no direct evidence was found linking this to an earlier history of sexual abuse, there was an indirect relationship through the impact of abuse on mental health. A logistic regression model incorporating General Health Questionnaire scores, alcohol problems and hours worked outside of study strongly predicted whether respondents knew of students engaged in sex work. For lap dancing in particular the model was very strong. This study provides further evidence of students' participation in sex work and its association with economic circumstances. Further longitudinal work is required to clarify the nature of these relationships.
Children and adolescents who sell sex: A community study
Article
Adolescents who reported to have given sexual favors for payment were investigated. The sample consisted of all adolescents in the public and private school systems in Oslo, the capital in Norway (age group 14-17, response rate 94.3%, N=10,828). Adolescents who had sold sex form 1.4%, three times as many boys as girls. Half the group had done it more than 10 times. Most were under the legal age of sex in Norway (16 years) when this first happened. We found no associations with sociodemographic variables or residential area in Oslo. However, sex sale was associated with low intercourse debut age, conduct problems, alcohol problems, use of drugs (including heroin) and violent victimization. The conclusion is that a small group in the general adolescent population sells sex, and many of the clients are assumed to be homosexual or bisexual men. Adolescents who take part in these activities are often heavily involved in delinquent behaviors and use of drugs, and many probably are in a risk zone for sexually transmitted diseases (including HIV), drug abuse and a delinquent and criminal development.
Selling Sex in a Population-Based Study of High School Seniors in Sweden: Demographic and Psychosocial Correlates
Article
  • Mar 2007
Adolescents reporting selling sex for payment were studied with respect to socioeconomic background, perceived mental health and health behavior, antisocial behavior, sexual experiences, including sexual abuse and abusive behaviors, and the use of pornography. The sample consisted of a representative sample of 4,339 students (response rate, 77.2%) from the third year of upper secondary schools in five Swedish cities. Of the participating adolescents, 1.8% of the boys and 1.0% of the girls indicated that they had sold sex for money or other reimbursements. Selling sex was associated with having an immigrant background, higher level of unemployment in the family, and studying a practical/vocational program. Adolescents with the experience of selling sex had an increased risk for different psychosocial problems, such as poorer mental health, weekly use of alcohol, and antisocial behaviors. The adolescents selling sex were also characterized by having had a greater number of sexual experiences, a greater preoccupation with sex, relatively early sexual debut, and experience with sexual abuse as victim and/or perpetrator. The index group students watched pornography more frequently than the majority and they also watched more deviant forms of pornography. The significance of the higher frequency among boys and the gray zone between normal sexual exploration and prostitution are discussed.