NCJ Number
227046
Journal
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice Volume: 25 Issue: 2 Dated: May 2009 Pages: 186-201
Date Published
May 2009
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study examined the link between work-related violence and mental health among sex workers in Chennai (formerly Madras), India.
Abstract
The study found that sex workers’ mean scores on scales for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression were higher for those who experienced violence in their work. Respondents with higher mean scores on these scales noted that the sex work in itself was not depressing or stressful, but the violence they encountered was stressful, especially when experienced frequently. Violence in their work came primarily from the police and from clients. All the respondents reported the constant fear of police beatings. Verbal abuse from relatives, friends, and neighbors was frequent, leading to isolation and loneliness that impacted their psychological well-being; however, workplace violence was the most powerful source for respondents’ stress and mental-health status. Resulting severe depression in the sample was the most likely to explain suicidal ideation and substance abuse. All of the sex workers interviewed reported that their socially and economically disadvantaged situations forced them to enter prostitution. Approximately 37 percent reported family-of-origin problems that included parents’ death, chronic unemployment, violence, and extreme poverty. Most had no realistic strategy for getting out of sex work. Cross-sectional data were drawn from 57 women through personal structured interviews between November 2007 and January 2008. Participants were randomly recruited through an agency that has ongoing contact with female street-based sex workers. The dependent variables were depression and suicide ideation and attempt. Depression was measured with the Center for Epidmiologic Studies Depression scale. The primary independent variables measured were workplace violence and the psychological outcomes of the violence. Severe workplace violence was self-reported and included being hit by open or closed hands or objects and being kicked, burned, raped, gang raped, and involuntarily restrained. PTSD was assessed with the PTSD Checklist. 4 tables, 1 figure, and 40 references