Lecture 18 - Prositution Flashcards
What is prositution?
A person of either sex who engages in sex for money,
Male prositutes are often called hustlers.
Sex trader is broader, referring to anyone to exchanges sex for money, drugs or some other material incentives.
Sex working is the broadest term including sex traders as well as people who work as cam girls, phone sex operaters and exotic dancers.
Discuss the history of prostitution
Prostitution was almost the only way that unattached women could support themselves. Christian theologians morally opposed to prostitution but considered necessary for society.
Temple prostitution still practiced in India also practiced throughout the world, for men and women.
Prostitution is common where there is a concentration of men-mining camps, war, American west.
It has declined rapidly due to contraception and relaxing of sexual mores.
It has been sugested that without prostitution, society would overrun as mens lust would overthrow society. Marriage is also important for this, with nothing to lose people become more risky.
What are street walkers
Street prostitues. 30-35% of Chicago study prostitutes were street walkers.
They bear the greatest risk from violence and arrest.
1/3 may be HIV positive.
UK study found all are drug or alcohol dependent.
Majority are from minority backgrounds.
Majority are mothers.
Often owned by pimps. But Pimps are much less common than they used to be, with only 4% of women working for pimps now.
Discuss escort service prostitution
Most prevalent form of prostitution. Services offered include girlfriend experience and porn star experience. Often work for Madams or agencies.
Why do men go to prostitutes
Less uncertain without hassles and obligations associated with regular dating.
Men may not have qualities women find attractive or may be shy.
Disability - Netherlands subsidised the disable and they can use this to pay sex workers.
Why do women become prostitutes
Economic necessity is probably a motive for only a minority of prostitutes such as runaway youths.
At the streetwalking level, even a single trick is equivalent to a days work at minimum wage.
High income is important for drug addict prostitutes and trans women trying to get money for sex reassignement surgery.
Discuss the legality of prositution
Legalisation would mean the regulation of prositution with laws regarding where, when, and how prostitution could take place.
Swedish/Nordic model criminalises the buying but not the selling of sex. The Johns are committing crime, but prostitutes are not.
Legalisation with regulation is demonstrated in some places, with prostitutes allowed to work in prescribed locations and under defined conditions.
In Europe there is a negative relationship between regulation strictness and the extent to which prostitutes follow regulations. In the netherlands, prostitues are not individually licensed or compelled to have medical tests, and most operate within the law. In Germany individual registration and health exams are required, but only 25% operate within the law. In Greexe, only 10% operate within the law - but individual registration and twice weekly health checks are required.
Discuss the Swedish/Nordic model of legalising prostistution
Swedish/Nordic model criminalises the buying but not the selling of sex. The Johns are committing crime, but prostitutes are not.
The Sweidish model may seem like a step in the right direction, but its not. Conceptually, the system strips women of agency and autonomy. Under this model, men are defined as morally superior to the woman - Maggie McNeill. But it still means criminalising people for consensual sex.
54% of British people support decriminalising consensual sex work - and the arguments in favour of it are found to be most persuasive.
Discuss the gender gap in attitudes towards prostitution
More than half of men think that prostitution should be legalised, and only 30% of women do in USA.
Overall, 43% say illegal and 40% say legal in USA.
What are the precursors of prostitution
Kruger found 27% of the men and 14% of the women who weren’t in a committed relationship had offered someone favors of gifts in exchange for sex. 9% of women and 5% of mean reported that they had attempted to trade sex for resources at least once.
Women report being sexually deceptive to get favours or special treatment (Cassell 1989). Women regularly use a subtle or overt sexual strategy to gain resources.
Discuss exchanges of girfts and sex across cultures
This is deonstrated in every culture. Symons discovered 79% of societies fell predominantly into the category of only men give gifts. 5% fell into men and women both give gifts, but mals are of greater value. 16% of societies showed men and women exchange gifts specifically stated to be of equal value.
What is a sugar baby
It is a woman who offers her time, company and usually sex to financially well-off men, who in turn takes care of her financially - covering many, and often all of her expenses.
Resource friend study: University of Texas (352 in final smaple)
Women reported their RFs eagerness to have sex with them was signficantly higher than the womans likelihood of having sex in the future.
Women with RF are more likely to be single, attractive and inclined towards an unrestricted mating strategy.
Women who have a RF who makes frequent sexual advantages will be less likely to spend time with him at ovulation.
42% with RF were single and 58% were mated. But half of the 52 women in relationship with an RF were in a long-distance relationship.
26% of women said there was a man who they spent time with that bought gifts for them. of these women, 19% had sex with him at least once.
Discuss sex for resources i the animal kingdom
Often seen in animal kingdom. We see gifting from males to females before mating. Exchange gifts for sex. This is just lower on the spectrum of prostitution?
Discuss fertility effects in prostitution
Although short-term mating and signaling sexual accessibility clearly provides benefits to women, there are also costs. Women at peak fertility are shown to be especially attractive to men.
It was predicted that women will spend less time with an RF wou makes frequent sexual advances at peak fertility, but were avoided the most during low conception risk and infrequent advances.
Summarise this prostitution lecture
Prostitution has a long hisotrical record although it happens significantly less frequently today than a century ago.
Prostitutes differ in their experiences and needs - streetwalkers, brother workers, escorts, drug users and trans workers.
Many types of exchange of resources or gifts for sex are not considered prostitution but are common and much more common from men to women.
Women often use sex appeal or possible sex to elicit resources and gifts and men often give gifts in hope for sex.
Attitudes towards prostitution morally and legally are in flux - most people want prostitution decriminalised but most also considered it immoral. Women are more anti prostitution than men.
