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Social attitudes towards sex work and its criminalization: An empirical study with a Spanish sample
Abstract
This article examines social attitudes towards sex work and its regulation in Spain, considering different types of sex work (street, brothel, private house, escort, and online). It also analyses underlying beliefs that have been shown in the literature to be relevant. A questionnaire was administered to 1168 participants (52% women and 48% men), with about 50% aged between 35 and 54. The results indicate that attitudes vary depending on the type of sex work, with greater disapproval for more visible or public forms such as street and brothel-based sex work. The beliefs driving this rejection align with the stigmatizing views of these forms. As for the regulatory measures , there is no clear preference for any of the approaches considered, although support for each of them is consistent with the premises of each regulatory framework in terms of freedom and equality, social problems, and the dignity of the activity. These findings suggest that it would be more appropriate to measure attitudes towards sex work by type of sexual services and that further research is needed, particularly if legislative change is sought.
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Sumario: 1. Introducción. 2. Explicando las actitudes. 3. Apoyo a la legalización de la prostitución en España. A. El problema de unos datos insuficientes. B. La posición social y actitudinal hacia la prostitu-ción. 4. Prostitución, magisterio moral y demanda de prostitución. 5. Conclusiones. Nota bibliográfica 1. INTRODUCCIÓN 1 Las ciencias sociales trabajan desde hace ya algún tiempo con una sencilla distinción entre dos tipos de políticas públicas (Barreiro 2000). De un lado, políticas públicas de orientación redistributiva, que afectan de manera general al reparto de los recursos en la sociedad; de otro, las políticas públicas morales, que afectan a las decisiones sobre la vida de la gente; es de-cir, sobre lo que pueden hacer o no en relación con sus estilos de vida y relaciones personales y, naturalmente, con la sexualidad. La literatura especializada ha encontrado diferencias signi-ficativas entre ambos tipos de políticas públi-cas, particularmente en lo relacionado con los vínculos entre ciudadanos y gobernantes; en el caso de las políticas morales, los ciudadanos tienen preferencias más intensas, toleran peor las rupturas de las promesas y, además, son ca-paces de formar sus propias opiniones sobre lo que hay que hacer y lo que no, sin demasiada necesidad de contar con conocimiento experto para tal fin. No cabe duda que la prostitución emerge como un ejemplo muy claro de políticas pú-blicas morales (Schmitt et al. 2013): el Estado, mediante el uso de la ley pero también a través de otros mecanismos, puede intervenir en las decisiones sexuales de clientes, así como en la regulación de las opciones de las mujeres en * Profesor Ayudante Doctor.
Introduction
This article explores how individual-level attitudes towards the exchange of sexual services for payment differ between the Nordic countries. The sparse existing research points to gender and general attitudes towards sexual behavior as powerful predictors of attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment. However, there are no previous research agendas that attempt to explain variance in such attitudes including all the Nordic countries.
Methods
We estimate regression models utilizing data from the joint Wave 5 European Values Study (EVS)/World Values Survey (WVS) Wave 7 (EVS 2017; WVS, 2020) asking about the acceptability of prostitution to predict attitudes towards the exchange of sexual services for payment in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.
Results
The findings point to considerable variation in attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment in the Nordic countries. The attitudinal differences align with how the different Nordic governments have approached the issue at hand. Moreover, the results suggest that gender and attitudes towards non-committal casual sex play a critical role in determining attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment. The impact of attitudes towards non-committal casual sex on attitudes towards the acceptability of exchanging sex for payment is different for women when compared to men in four of the five countries.
Conclusions
The empirical results provide convincing evidence that women are less likely than men to translate liberal attitudes towards general sexual behavior into lenient attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment.
Policy Implications
The results indicate that government policies play a crucial role in shaping public attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment, and policymakers should consider the potential impact of their stance on the issue. Policymakers and others who want to shift attitudes towards the exchange of sex for payment in the Nordic region should be cognizant of their interconnectedness with gender and attitudes towards non-committal casual sex.
Despite the stigmatization of sex work in society, little empirical research has examined attitudes toward sex work, especially its modern incarnations (e.g., sugar relationships, webcamming). Here, a sample of 298 US residents (Mage = 40.06 years; 59.1% male, 40.9% female) was recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Various theoretical predictors (e.g., right-wing authoritarianism [RWA]), sociosexuality) were set to predict the degree to which four sex work domains (prostitution, pornography, sugar relationships, webcamming) provide cisgender women agency (beneficial) or harm them (detrimental). We found that the domains of sex work were organized hierarchically, as theorized by the so-called “whorearchy,” whereby the more “unfavorable” domains (e.g., prostitution) fall at the bottom, and the more “favorable” ones (e.g., webcamming) sit at the top. Additionally, multiple regression analyses revealed that RWA (negatively) and sociosexuality (positively) were the strongest predictors of sex work agency across various domains. In predicting harm, RWA, feminism, religiosity, and age were unique positive predictors, whereas sociosexuality and male (vs. female) self-identified sex were unique negative predictors, across the four domains of sex work. Moreover, individual differences (e.g., RWA) were often significantly stronger predictors of agency or harm among female than male participants. The results suggest that although sex work domains vary in agency and harm ratings, individual differences (most notably, RWA and sociosexuality) are important predictors across domains, especially for cisgender women. Given the growing prevalence of such online forms of sex work, along with growing evidence of sugar relationships, it will become increasingly important to track reactions as these forms of sex work evolve.
Few existing studies have delved into individual-level attitudes towards the exchange of sexual services for payment, leaving a significant gap in our understanding. Various studies have speculated about how certain demographic factors and attitudes may shape people's perceptions of causes and consequences relating to such exchanges, but none have directly investigated this topic. To bridge this gap, we predict individual-level associations between the exchange of sexual services for payment and positive and negative concepts. Using an original survey involving a substantial sample size of adults in the U.S. (n = 611), we examine the extent to which respondents associate these exchanges with sexual freedom, companionship, women's empowerment, poverty, women's exploitation, and human trafficking. Our study reveals some compelling results. When predicting attitudes towards the exchange of sexual services for payment, we find that women exhibit a stronger association with the negative concepts than men. Furthermore, individuals who view the exchange of sexual services for payment as socially acceptable are more likely to have stronger associations with the positive concepts. Surprisingly, the acceptability of exchanging sexual services for payment has no discernable impact on association with the negative concepts. The results add to our understanding of how the public perceives the exchange of sexual services for payment. A more nuanced understanding of public perception can foster constructive dialogues and debates, allowing for a more comprehensive exploration of potential policy solutions.
This study investigates people’s associations between the exchange of sexual services for payment and different sexual activities. Sex work entails a range of activities, from in person services to online performances. To date, no study has asked about the activities individuals associate with the exchange of sexual services for payment. The relationship between the exchange of sexual services for payment and specific activities is an important area for inquiry, as there exists considerable variance in people’s views on sex work and associations are impacted by a range of attitudes. Using an original survey involving a substantial sample size of adults in the U.S. (n = 1,034), respondents are asked their level of association between the exchange of sexual services for payment and seven activities: pornographic photos, pornographic videos, webcamming, erotic dancing, erotic massages, oral sex, and sexual intercourse. The results reveal that respondents are more likely to associate the exchange of sexual services for payment with activities requiring in person and physical contact between sex workers and clients than non-physical activities. In addition, we find that conservatives are more likely to associate the exchange of sexual services for payment with non-physical activities than liberals. Moreover, we find that people who view the exchange of sexual services for payment as acceptable are more likely to recognize a broader range of activities as associated with such exchanges than are those who hold more negative attitudes. Views on acceptability are more important than are previous experiences of paying for sexual services. Our findings offer valuable insights for policymakers, researchers, and advocates seeking a comprehensive grasp of the complexities surrounding sex work in contemporary society.
Research on public perceptions of sex work in the United States (U.S.) has narrowly focused on street sex work, rather than including many other forms of sex work, such as sexual services provided online. With recent federal legislation aimed at addressing human trafficking (FOSTA-SESTA) facing criticism for harming sex workers, especially those who work in online spaces, examining policy preferences for a wide range of forms of sex work is necessary. Analyzing these preferences can help inform policy development that reflects the realities of sex work and protects sex workers' physical and economic health. Using a web-based survey of U.S. adults (N = 549), policy preferences were examined for the legalization and regulation of sex work. Thirteen forms of sex work were included, varying along dimensions of contact, space (in-person vs virtual), and entrepreneurship. Using a one-way analysis of variance, we examined generational differences in these attributions and found important age-related differences in both policy preferences and the reasons why respondents thought sex work should be illegal. We also addressed previously unexamined attitudinal correlates of these policy preferences using multivariate regression. We found that policy preferences for the illegality of sex work were negatively associated with attitudes toward abortion and positively associated with perceptions of government legitimacy. The findings of this study suggest that there are nuances in public opinion of sex work that are not currently reflected in U.S. policy, with generational differences indicating a shift away from criminalization.
Introduction
The debate about prostitution within Spain’s feminist movement has recently, and recurrently, been transferred to the social and political sphere, but without arriving at a clear and shared position. The aim of this research is to verify the characteristics of those who are in favor of banning prostitution in Spain and to what extent there are differences between men and women.
Methods
To do so, we will use our own collected data during 2022 through a prestigious social research company, 40 dB, and by applying advanced statistical techniques—Logit model.
Results
The analysis illustrates three types of profile. The first one depicts the prohibitionist’s supporter profile in general terms. The second and the third ones demonstrate how women and men share similarities but also underlying differences, showing how women are more inclined than men to the prohibitionist approach.
Conclusions
This paper comes to validate, once again, most of the previous theoretical supported evidences, but not the religious element as a defining variable for being a banning supporter. The data also shows the possible consensus of those surveyed on this issue across different political parties.
Policy Implications
The implications of all kinds that arise around prostitution generate different public perceptions about its existence and practice, with its prohibition being one of the most important issues on the Spanish public agenda in recent months. This article depicts how the Spanish society positions itself in this policy agenda.
This short article presents in brief the findings of a community-based, sex worker-led survey that asked sex workers about their experiences since the closure of Backpage and adoption of FOSTA. It shows that the financial situation of the vast majority of research participants has deteriorated, as has their ability to access community and screen clients. It concludes that FOSTA is just the latest example of the US government using anti-trafficking policy and restrictions on technology to police already marginalised people.
La extensión de las prácticas de sexo transaccional en el ciberespacio, provocada especialmente por la difusión de plataformas que facilitan el cibersexo, suscita la necesidad de examinar cuál sería la respuesta penal adecuada a las conductas que atenten contra la libertad y la indemnidad sexual en el contexto de estas prácticas. La transformación que las relaciones sexuales experimentan en la sociedad digital hace patentes las profundas deficiencias de la actual regulación de los delitos relativos a la prostitución en el derecho español, lo cual obliga a emitir recomendaciones de política criminal que tengan en cuenta otros modelos legislativos. La jurisprudencia española se ha mostrado receptiva ante las nuevas formas de relación sexual producidas por la digitalización de la vida social, al flexibilizar los requisitos para la apreciación de los delitos de agresión y abuso sexual, lo que plantea dudas respecto a si con ello se incurre en una vulneración de la prohibición de la aplicación analógica de la ley penal.
This study explored the impact of question wording on attitudes toward trading sexual services. There are no previous research agendas investigating how views on the trade in sex are susceptible to question word choice. We utilized an original survey to assess how three different concepts used to represent the exchange of sexual services impact on the reported level of acceptability among respondents. The concepts we selected were “prostitution,” “sex work”, and “transactional sex.” We also explored the contrasting effects of predictor variables based on question wording, such as general sexual attitudes and positive and negative associations with trading sex. We found that attitudes toward the trading of sex is partially a function of question wording. Respondents were more likely to translate negative associations with the exchange of sexual services into unacceptability when assigned a question using the term prostitution. The results indicated that prostitution is a stigmatized word, resonating more negatively with respondents as compared to sex work or transactional sex. When asked about transactional sex, respondents were less likely to translate an attitude into an assessment on acceptability, indicating that the term is vague. Sex work elicited more neutral responses on acceptability. The results suggest that sex work would be the most useful term to use in dialogue and debate regarding the trade in sexual services. Sex work does not appear to be imbued with the same sense of negativity as prostitution and the meaning of sex work seems clearer than transactional sex.
Religiosity and sex-related attitudes are often correlated, and on occasion negatively. That is, as religiosity increases, sexual attitudes tend to become more conservative or generally more disapproving in valence. Recent research suggests that one's own sex guilt may be the mediating influence in this relationship. A series of two studies sought to extend that research and examine the extent to which an individual's religiosity and sex guilt influences their perspective of pornography and sex workers. A survey containing relevant measures was distributed to undergraduate participants as well as individuals from Amazon.com's MTurk. Results indicate that individuals high in religiosity have more negative views of pornography in general, and more demonizing views toward sex workers. However, it was their own sex guilt that mediated that relationship. This study replicates and adds to our current understanding of how religiosity and disparaging views of sex are related, but also shows the importance of including sex guilt as an influential individual difference.
En este trabajo se exponen las particularidades de la normativa sancionadora –penal y administrativa– existente en materia de prostitución en España, así como sus efectos en términos sociocriminológicos. Para ello se aborda en primer lugar un análisis de la normativa indicada, comprensivo de la evolución de los planteamientos políticos que promueven las diferentes decisiones legislativas. En segundo lugar, y en relación con el contexto social en que se insertan tales decisiones, se realiza una aproximación a la percepción social de la prostitución a través de fuentes secundarias. Por último, se muestran de forma sistematizada los resultados disponibles sobre los efectos sociales que se derivan de la aplicación de una normativa sancionadora que se caracteriza por proyectar una imagen de la prostitución como problema de seguridad pública y por intervenir sólo frente a las manifestaciones más precarizadas.
Este artículo expone las claves que dificultan la indagación sociológica sobre la prostitución, los enfoques o marcos que se adoptan para ello, las fricciones que mantienen los principales enfoques y los retos que tiene ante sí el estudio científicosocial del fenómeno. Investigar sobre prostitución plantea dificultades por lo complejo y controvertido que resulta dicho objeto, por lo distintas que son las perspectivas desde las que se estudia y por el desafío que supone tratar de evadirse de las disputas morales e ideológicas asociadas a esta práctica social desde sus orígenes. Adoptando una posición objetiva y suficientemente distanciada, este trabajo quiere superar la controversia permanente que domina el debate académico.
Objectives
This article analyzes the extent to which the legal framework for prostitution can influence the moral judgments individuals make about purchasing sex. We hypothesize that the decriminalization of prostitution (versus the criminalization of purchasing sexual services) increases the acceptability of buying sex.Methods
To test this hypothesis, we conduct a factorial survey experiment (FSE) for a Spanish sample. Various descriptions (vignettes) of hypothetical scenarios regarding prostitution in Spain were presented to the respondents to elicit them to form judgements about the acceptability of purchasing sexual services (by a man from a woman) in each of these scenarios.ResultsFrom the analysis carried out with multilevel models, robust and causal empirical evidence was obtained in favor of this hypothesis. This result was moderated by some of the contextual variables presented in the vignettes and by some personal characteristics of the respondents.Conclusions
Different legal approaches to the sex industry can influence attitudes towards purchasing sexual services.
The present study examined whether regulatory attitudes toward prostitution are related to agency attributed to prostitutes and moral outrage. A Spanish sample (N = 391, aged 18–53 years old) completed a questionnaire that included two separate parts. In the first part, participants answered a scale on regulatory attitudes toward prostitution; in the second part, after reading one of two scenarios, participants answered questions about agency and moral outrage. Results showed a different pattern in the link between regulatory attitudes and social perception when participants perceived prostitutes as victims of sexual slavery (Scenario 1) or as women who freely choose to sell sexual services (Scenario 2). This study provides empirical evidence of how some regulatory attitudes toward prostitution are linked to mind attributions and negative feelings toward sex workers, and how it depends on the type of prostitute who practices it. These findings contribute to our knowledge of attitudes toward prostitution, which could inform future policy-making.
Este trabajo analiza las estimaciones que desde medios políticos y sociales se ofrecen sobre la trata con fines de explotación sexual en España. Partiendo de distintas fuentes de información recogidas por los autores (entrevistas a informantes clave y a tratantes, análisis de sentencias judiciales, trabajo etnográfico, análisis de noticias en prensa y memorias de organismos oficiales) se realizan estimaciones del coste y beneficios económicos que los tratantes obtienen de sus víctimas, y se cuestionan las informaciones contradictorias y obsoletas que se utilizan para referirse al número de víctimas y a los hombres que pagan por servicios sexuales.
This study explores the moralization of purity and perceptions of harm as constraints on sex buying among men. Purchasing sex has long been considered an offense against public morality. While personal morality provides a powerful constraint on offending, and people may vary in the extent to which they experience moral intuitions about bodily and spiritual purity, research has so far neglected the role of purity moralization in understanding sex buying behavior. We hypothesize specifically that moral intuitions about purity constrain sex buying by leading people to perceive it as inherently wrong and by eliciting perceptions that sex buying is harmful to prostitutes. We test these hypotheses in a nationally representative survey of U.S. men (N = 2,525). Results indicate that purity moralization is associated with reduced sex buying, and that this relationship is mediated fully by perceptions of sex buying as harming prostitutes.
Introduction
This article explores explanations for attitudes towards the acceptability of transactional sex. The sparse research investigating attitudes towards transactional sex uncovers a link between gender equality, or feminism, and a lack of support for the trade in sex. However, there are no research agendas that attempt to explain variance in attitudes towards transactional sex where support for gender equality is widespread throughout a population.
Methods
We estimate regression models utilizing the 2017 Danish Values Survey (Den Danske Værdiundersøgelse) in order to predict views on the acceptability of transactional sex.
Results
While the trade in sex is legal in Denmark, we find that a majority of respondents hold negative attitudes towards transactional sex, which conveys a lack of congruence between public opinion and policy. Further, gender is a powerful predictor of attitudes towards transactional sex, with women finding it less acceptable. In addition, the analysis uncovers that general attitudes towards sexual behaviour are the largest predictor of views on the acceptability of transactional sex. That being said, we find that men’s views on the acceptability of transactional sex are more of a function of their general attitudes towards sexual behaviour than they are for women.
Conclusions
The findings indicate that, unlike men, women appear to differentiate between their attitudes towards general sexual behaviour and their views on sexual behaviour that they may associate with negative societal implications.
Significance
Some jurisdictions ban markets regarded as repugnant. However, many bans foster black markets when the population insufficiently shares the repugnance that inspires the ban. Relationships between repugnance and regulation are important for understanding both when markets can operate effectively and when they can effectively be banned. We conduct surveys in Germany, Spain, the Philippines, and the United States about three controversial markets—prostitution, surrogacy, and global kidney exchange (GKE). Prostitution is the only one banned in the United States and the Philippines and only one allowed in Germany and Spain. Unlike prostitution, majorities support legalization of surrogacy and GKE in all four countries. There is not a simple relation between public support for markets, or bans, and their regulatory status.
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.
A sugar relationship is a transactional sexual relationship in which a younger partner (sugar baby/boy) offers companionship and sexual services to a much older partner (sugar daddy/mommy) in return for material compensation. One aim of the present study was to develop an attitude scale assessing young women’s and men’s acceptance of sugar relationships. Another aim was to explore the possible associations of the acceptance of sugar relationships with psychological functioning in an intimate partner relationship and in a sexual relationship and with certain socially undesirable personality traits. Two online studies were conducted with a total number of 2052 participants (1879 women; age = 18–28 years). The results show that the Acceptance of Sugar Relationships in Young Women and Men Scale (ASR-YWMS) is a reliable and valid measure of young people’s attitude toward sugar relationships. The studies revealed that young women’s and men’s accepting attitude toward sugar relationships was positively associated with unrestricted sociosexuality, a game-playing love style (Ludus), self-focused sexual motivation (Study 1; N = 319; 272 women and 47 men), and with socially undesirable traits such as Machiavellianism, subclinical psychopathy, and a borderline personality organization (Study 2; N = 1733; 1607 women and 126 men). These findings suggest that a relatively high level of acceptance of sugar relationships is part of a mating strategy focused on opportunities of maximizing resources. This utilitarian, risk-taking and exploitative attitude is characteristic to a fast life history strategy, and it is a fundamental organizing principle of psychological and sexual functioning in intimate partner relationships.
Prostitution is a standard case of morality politics (MP), defined as a particular type of politics that engages issues closely related to religious and/or moral values, giving way to strong and uncompromising value conflicts in both societal and political spheres. This kind of issues have increasingly become a European policy matter due to their transnational nature and the tensions they create between different legal principles. Our hypothesis is that this leads to the emergence of a specific type of European morality politics (EMP) reflecting the particular constraints of the policymaking of the European Union (EU). The purpose of this article is to understand to which extent the rise of prostitution on the EU agenda alters usual patterns of MP to shape a distinctive type of EMP. Our findings suggest that prostitution characterizes EMP albeit with a significant difference, namely the challenge to regulatory inertia through the successful mobilisation of European values by some policy entrepreneurs to promote a neo-abolitionist approach.
Prostitution clients’ attitudes toward gender equality are important indicators of how masculinity relates to the demand for commercial sexual services. Research on male client misogyny has been inconclusive, and few studies compare men in different markets. Using an online survey of 519 clients of sexual services, we examine whether male client attitudes toward gender role equality are related to the main methods customers used to access prostitution services (i.e., through print or online media vs. in-person contact). We found no differences among men in these markets in attitudes toward gender role equality in the workplace and home. This is in a context where all clients had more egalitarian attitudes toward women’s roles than the U.S. male population in the General Social Survey (GSS). However, clients in in-person markets were less supportive of affirmative action than in online markets in a context where all clients were less supportive compared to the national average. These findings point to need to rethink how masculinity and gender role attitudes affect patterns of male demand for paid sex.
Background: The tendency for female sex workers to seek health care is highly influenced by physician attitudes and behavior. By identifying medical students' attitudes toward female sex workers and assessing their knowledge of barriers to seeking care, we can focus medical training and advocacy efforts to increase access to care and improve public health outcomes. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, medical students from various countries were invited to participate in an online survey with close-ended questions and Likert scale statements. Responses were quantified and knowledge and attitude scores were assigned based on knowledge of barriers to seeking care and agreement with positive and negative attitude statements. Results: A total of 292 medical students from 56 countries completed the survey, of whom 98.3% agreed that it will be their job to provide treatment to patients regardless of occupation. Self-identified religious students conveyed more negative attitudes toward female sex workers compared to those who did not identify themselves as religious (p<0.001). Students intending to practice in countries where prostitution is legal conveyed more positive attitudes compared to those intending to practice in countries where prostitution is illegal (p<0.001). Conclusion: Medical students largely agreed on the importance of providing care to female sex workers as a vulnerable group. In addition to addressing knowledge gaps in medical education, more localized studies are needed to understand the religious and legal influences on attitudes toward female sex workers. Such information can help focus the efforts in both medical education and communication training to achieve the desired behavioral impacts, reconciling the future generations of health care providers with the needs of female sex workers.
Sex work was not a prominent public issue in the USA a generation ago. Law and law enforcement were fairly settled. Over the past two decades, however, a robust campaign has sought to intensify the stigmatization and criminalization of the participants involved in all types of sex work, which are now conflated with human trafficking. These efforts have been remarkably successful in reshaping government policy and legal norms and in enhancing penalties for existing offenses. The article analyzes these developments within the framework of a modernized version of moral crusade theory that includes both instrumental and expressive arguments against sex work.
The present investigation analyzes the legal treatment of prostitution and its form of punishment when it is done coercively. From a Criminal Law perspective, there is some debate on whether it is necessary to expand the field of potential authors who, in some way, obtain economic or social benefits from prostitution:. Among the first are, on the one hand, the non-coercive pimps, basically, the owners of brothels and hostess clubs and ruffians, and, on the other hand, those who practice prostitution. Among the second are the customers. This article looks at the different models that speak of the punishment of this practice and exposes its characteristics, and then goes on to develop its central objective that to analyze the legitimacy of such models from a criminal perspective, which implies to investigate the basis of the punishment of the behaviors whose criminalization is defended.
This brief recognises that prostitution policy regimes can be identified as repressive, restrictive and integrative, or a combination of these. It therefore recommends a policy approach that is context-sensitive, suggesting measures against violence, exploitation, and trafficking that can be implemented in each type of regime. The main strategies for preventing exploitation are those that can reduce sex workers’ vulnerability, limit opportunities for exploitation, and build alliances between sex workers, NGOs, and authorities. The brief also recommends a collaborative form of governance that has proven successful when developing innovative policy measures in other politically sensitive domains.
Prostitution, payment for the exchange of sexual services, is deemed a major social problem in most countries around the world today, with little to no consensus on how to address it. In this Target Article, we unpack what we discern as the two primary positions that undergird academic thinking about the relationship between inequality and prostitution: (1) prostitution is principally an institution of hierarchal gender relations that legitimizes the sexual exploitation of women by men, and (2) prostitution is a form of exploited labor where multiple forms of social inequality (including class, gender, and race) intersect in neoliberal capitalist societies. Our main aims are to: (a) examine the key claims and empirical evidence available to support or refute each perspective; (b) outline the policy responses associated with each perspective; and (c) evaluate which responses have been the most effective in reducing social exclusion of sex workers in societal institutions and everyday practices. While the overall trend globally has been to accept the first perspective on the “prostitution problem” and enact repressive policies that aim to protect prostituted women, punish male buyers, and marginalize the sex sector, we argue that the strongest empirical evidence is for adoption of the second perspective that aims to develop integrative policies that reduce the intersecting social inequalities sex workers face in their struggle to make a living and be included as equals. We conclude with a call for more robust empirical studies that use strategic comparisons of the sex sector within and across regions and between sex work and other precarious occupations.
Los datos reflejados en este artículo son parte del Estudio sobre la prostitución de mujeres en Canarias, financiado por el Instituto Canario de Igualdad y realizado por la Universidad de La Laguna. Se trata de un proyecto de investigación que ha analizado las opiniones de las mujeres en prostitución, los demandantes, los profesionales que intervienen directa o indirectamente en el fenómeno y las percepciones de la ciudadanía. La información aquí reflejada procede de los resultados de la encuesta realizada a personas residentes en Canarias para conocer sus percepciones y opiniones sobre la prostitución de mujeres.
Este estudio explora las opiniones de hombres españoles sobre la prostitución, especialmente de aquellos que han pagado por servicios sexuales. Se ha partido de una muestra aleatoria de 1.048 hombres de 18 a 70 años residentes en España, mediante encuesta telefónica, a través de un cuestionario con 37 preguntas. El 20,3% ha pagado servicios sexuales alguna vez en su vida y el 15% en el último año. Entre los resultados se destaca una tipología de clientes de prostitución en función de sus motivos para comprar servicios sexuales: los Funners (24,1%), que buscarían ocio y diversión; los Thingers, (21,7%) que desean sexo sin implicación ni compromiso; otro 21,7% los Couple Seekers, que buscan pareja; los Riskers, (19,8%) que además de sexo le atrae los comportamientos de riesgo asociados; y los Personalizers (12,6%) serían aquellos que desean sexo con intimidad y compañía. Estos grupos difieren en su satisfacción sexual y en sus creencias u opiniones sobre los motivos que las mujeres tienen para ejercer la prostitución. En función de estos grupos se realizan recomendaciones para la sensibilización y concienciación de los clientes de prostitución en la lucha contra la trata.
Moral violations seem to elicit moral outrage because of the wrongfulness of the deed. However, recent studies have questioned the existence of moral outrage, because moral violations are confounded with the harm done to victims. Such harm elicits empathic anger rather than moral outrage (Batson et al., 2007; Batson et al., 2009). Thus, moral outrage is triggered by the wrongfulness of an action (i.e., a perpetrator's intention to harm), whereas empathic anger is triggered by its harmfulness (i.e., the actual harm done). Four studies (N = 1065) in varying contexts orthogonally crossed these antecedents of anger to differentiate between moral outrage and empathic anger. The results demonstrate that anger mainly emerged from the intention to harm, rather than the actual harm done. In contrast, the actual harm elicited empathy with victims. The findings suggest that anger about moral violations emerges separately from empathic reactions, although these reactions are difficult to distinguish in most instances. Likewise, the intention to harm provoked a willingness to punish the perpetrator much more than the actual harm did. Moral violations thus elicit moral outrage independently of their harmful consequences, even though such anger may often overlap with concern for others.
Attitudes towards prostitution are related to stereotypes that normalize the phenomenon and justify violence against women in the sex industry. The present study explored attitudes towards prostitution in Greece by investigating their relation to beliefs in a just world, previous experience as a client of prostitution and key demographic characteristics in a sample of 624 Greek female and male client and non-client participants. The results indicated that most of the participants perceived prostitution as a socially harmful phenomenon, whereas low belief in immanent justice and high belief in ultimate justice were significantly correlated to negative attitudes towards prostitution. Gender differences were also revealed, with male participants showing more positive attitudes towards prostitution. Previous experience as a client of prostitution was also found to predict positive attitudes, with clients (as compared to non-clients) adopting more positive attitudes towards prostitution.
Background
Stigma involves discrediting a person or group based on a perceived attribute, behaviour or reputation associated with them. Sex workers (SW) and men who have sex with men (MSM) are key populations who are often at increased risk for the acquisition and transmission of HIV and who are affected by stigma that can negatively impact their health and well-being. Although stigma was included as an indicator in the US National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan and there have been consultations focused on adding a stigma indicator within PEPFAR and the Global Fund in relation to potentiating HIV risks among key populations, there remains limited consensus on the appropriate measurement of SW- or MSM-associated stigma. Consequently, this systematic review summarizes studies using quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods approaches to measure stigma affecting sex workers and men who have sex with men.
Methods and findings
This systematic review included English, French, and Spanish peer-reviewed research of any study design measuring SW- or MSM-associated stigma. Articles were published from January 1, 2004 to March 26, 2014 in PsycINFO, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, Global Health, and World Health Organization Global Health Library Regional Indexes.
Of the 541 articles reviewed, the majority measured stigma toward MSM (over 97%), were conducted in North America, used quantitative methods, and focused on internalized stigma.
Conclusions
With the inclusion of addressing stigma in several domestic and international HIV strategies, there is a need to ensure the use of validated metrics for stigma. The field to date has completed limited measurement of stigma affecting sex workers, and limited measurement of stigma affecting MSM outside of higher income settings. Moving forward requires a concerted effort integrating validated metrics of stigma into health-related surveys and programs for key populations.
Researchers have shown that stigma is a fundamental determinant of behavior, well-being, and health for many marginalized groups, but sex workers are notably absent from their analyses. This article aims to fill the empirical research gap on sex workers by reviewing the mounting evidence of stigmatization attached to sex workers’ occupation, often referred to as “prostitution” or “whore” stigma. We give special attention to its negative effect on the working conditions, personal lives, and health of sex workers. The article first draws attention to the problem of terminology related to the subject area and makes the case for consideration of prostitution stigmatization as a fundamental cause of social inequality. We then examined the sources of prostitution stigma at macro, meso, and micro levels. The third section focuses on tactics sex workers employ to manage, reframe, or resist occupational stigma. We conclude with a call for more comparative studies of stigma related to sex work to contribute to the general stigma literature, as well as social policy and law reform.
Romania is a major source country of labor migration to other EU countries, being commonly perceived as a source country for sex workers operating in more prosperous economies. However, very little is known about population attitudes in relation to prostitution in Romania. Based on nationally representative data from the Romanian Gender Barometer (2018) survey, we analyzed data on 860 individuals to examine the predictors of policy preferences for legalizing prostitution. We considered individual-level socio-demographics and household-level indicators such as the presence of children and migrants, as well as socio-cultural beliefs and behaviors related to social liberalism and religiosity. The findings suggest that male gender and higher education are strong predictors of preferences for the legalization of prostitution. However, living in a household with migrants and attending church regularly were negatively associated with the legalizing policy option. Moreover, social liberalism-expressed as both favorable attitudes toward the introduction of sex education in school curriculum, and as a rejection of traditional gender roles-increased the odds of supporting the legalization of prostitution. The interaction between presence of children under 18 in the household and respondents’ occupational status also revealed a significant effect. Such findings are relevant in order to correctly develop and orient prostitution policy in a way that works for citizens.
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.
The present study examined whether regulatory attitudes toward prostitution are related to agency attributed to prostitutes and moral outrage. A Spanish sample (N = 391, aged 18–53 years old) completed a questionnaire that included two separate parts. In the first part, participants answered a scale on regulatory attitudes toward prostitution; in the second part, after reading one of two scenarios, participants answered questions about agency and moral outrage. Results showed a different pattern in the link between regulatory attitudes and social perception when participants perceived prostitutes as victims of sexual slavery (Scenario 1) or as women who freely choose to sell sexual services (Scenario 2). This study provides empirical evidence of how some regulatory attitudes toward prostitution are linked to mind attributions and negative feelings toward sex workers, and how it depends on the type of prostitute who practices it. These findings contribute to our knowledge of attitudes toward prostitution, which could inform future policy-making.
In the context of on-going debates regarding sex work laws, in most jurisdictions forms of criminalisation continue to dominate. Despite decades of sex workers calling for the decriminalisation of sex work and collectively organising against repressive laws, decriminalisation remains uncommon. New Zealand was the first full country to decriminalise sex work with the passing of the Prostitution Reform Act in 2003, which aimed to improve occupational health and safety. Several empirical studies have documented positive impacts of this framework. However, despite this, neo-abolitionists persistently describe the New Zealand model as a failed approach. This article examines neo-abolitionist knowledge claims regarding the New Zealand model and in doing so unpacks the strategic stories told about this approach, considering the implications for sex work policy making.
El fenómeno de la prostitución es abordado desde diferentes perspectivas de la política criminal, sin embargo, en España el tratamiento que recibe el ejercicio de la prostitución, por personas mayores de edad y que prestan su consentimiento, dista mucho del de otros países que adoptan políticas abolicionistas o prohibicionistas. En este estudio, se muestra la realidad por la que atraviesa este sector, un vacío legal, que lo estigmatiza aún más. Si bien la explotación sexual de un tercero o el lucro proveniente del desempeño de este oficio por otra persona, está penado y perseguido, el libre ejercicio no está regulado a nivel estatal, quedando así en manos de los municipios su regulación a través de ordenanzas municipales que no hacen más que agravar la difícil situación que viven aquellas personas que ejercen la prostitución.
Most research on the social perception of sexual violence is based on samples of university students, while it is rare to find studies with representative samples, despite the vital importance of this information in planning prevention strategies. Furthermore, in Europe, the social perception of sexual violence has been explored very marginally. Our main objective with this study was to explore, by means of a representative sample of the general population (N = 2,465), the relationship between the acceptability of sexual violence and demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal factors in Spain. The variable with the highest impact on the outcome was sexism, followed by knowledge of the most common type of victim–perpetrator relationship, age, perceived frequency of false complaints, and educational background. Other variables such as sex, country of birth, attitudes toward the consumption of prostitution, or opinions regarding prevention of sexual violence were also significant. A better understanding of the factors influencing public attitudes toward sexual violence would be useful to guide prevention efforts.
It is well documented that sex workers manage risks in their work – such as the potential for violence and the multiple risks associated with stigma. While sex workers are commonly understood to be a stigmatised population, few studies have considered in depth how stigma operates in different legislative contexts, how it relates to sex-worker safety, and how it may be reduced. Stigma is understood to be exacerbated by the criminalisation of sex work, which defines sex workers as deviant others and consequently renders them more vulnerable to violence. However, as full decriminalisation of sex work is still relatively rare, there has been little in-depth exploration into the relationship between this legislative approach, risks of violence, and stigma. Drawing on the findings of in-depth interviews with street-based sex workers and sex-worker rights advocates, in this article I explore the links between stigma and violence, and discuss the challenges of reducing stigma associated with sex work in New Zealand, post-decriminalisation. I argue that while decriminalisation has undoubtedly benefited sex workers in New Zealand, stigma continues to have a negative impact – particularly for street-based sex workers. Decriminalisation should therefore be considered an essential starting point. However, ongoing work must focus on countering stigmatising narratives, to enable a safer society for all sex workers.
Since the late 1990s, many countries have been debating what prostitution policies to apply, and, particularly in Europe, several have changed the overall approach to the phenomenon and the people involved. Prostitution is more than ever before firmly placed on policy agendas as a topic related to gender equality and globalization. Furthermore, it is seen in context with issues relating to organized crime, health, and gentrification. In both policy debates and the academic discourse, particular ways of regulating prostitution are treated as models and a central discussion is which model among these works best. In this article, I argue that this search for a best practice of prostitution policy that can be transferred to and work similarly in a new jurisdiction builds on a lack of understanding of the importance of context and implementation. How policies work depends on, among other factors, aims, implementation structures, and characteristics of local prostitution markets. But I present a broad spectrum of research to clarify what should be taken into consideration when assessing policies' abilities to achieve diverse goals. I argue that a fundamental problem in both prostitution policy debates and scholarship is that the arguments over prostitution policies have become too detached from the many and differing contexts in which these policies operate and I propose a way forward for research.