"The Prostitution Problem": Why Isn't Evidence Used to Inform Policy Initiatives?

Challenges and Benefits of Disclosure of Sex Work to Intimate Partners

Sex workers' noncommercial intimate partnerships are marginalized on two counts - they are non-monogamous and at least one partner is in sex work, an occupation with much stigma. We asked a heterogeneous sample of Canadian sex workers (N = 218) about their decisions to reveal/not reveal their sex work to intimate partners, and the resulting challenges and benefits. A minority (58/183) of participants who had been or were currently involved in an intimate relationship kept their work secret from at least one partner or disclosed limited information, shielding them from stigma but resulting in a burden of secrecy. The majority of participants (151/183) who had been/were currently involved in an intimate relationship chose to disclose their sex work to at least one partner, which for most, had one or more negative consequences. A small group of participants related that disclosure resulted in acceptance, support, and understanding from their intimate partner. Some participants avoided the disclosure dilemma by forming intimate relationships from social connections where sex work status was already known. These relationships were generally supportive. We conclude that intimate relationships provide positive experiences for many people who sell sexual services and that these relationships could be stronger if societal stigma was reduced.

Support for Prostitution Legalization in Romania: Individual, Household, and Socio-cultural Determinants

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.

Sex Work Governance Models: Variations in a Criminalized Context

BACKGROUND

Under current laws, sex workers are effectively criminalized, which can lead to harmful impacts beyond arrest and prosecution for sex work-specific offenses, including eviction, search and seizure, surveillance, harassment, and deportation. Although these laws are federal, they are realized in and by policy communities at the municipal level.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Based on a qualitative and inductive study of local policy actors affected by or involved in the implementation of prostitution laws, including 65 semistructured interviews in 2014, 2015, and 2016, we identify five different governance models within a shared legal framework of criminalization. We derive these models from an exploration of interactions among actors and organizations based in selected Canadian cities, all of which are bound by federal laws that criminalize the buying of sex thus effectively criminalizing prostitution.

RESULTS

Our study surfaces a diversity of traditional and non-traditional policy players who interpret and implement prostitution laws or advocate for and support sex workers. Focusing on equilibrium moments in relationships among these actors, we identify ideational frames that appear to shape dynamics among them and, in turn, give rise to different governance models.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings of different models within the same, overarching legal context are notable because it demonstrates the variability of a single law when it is implemented in local contexts. This is a contribution not just to understanding how prostitution is governed in particular contexts but also to policy and governance theory more generally. Our findings can serve in future, deductive studies that seek to determine the causes and implications of different governance models in the policy area of prostitution and beyond.