NCJ Number
209644
Date Published
2005
Length
217 pages
Annotation
Based on the author's conversations with women involved in the indoor prostitution markets in Birmingham, England, this book discusses the social organization of the commercial sex industry, the risks posed for women involved in it, and the mechanisms and strategies used to manage these risks.
Abstract
Chapter 1 describes how sex is sold and who is involved. It is the basis for discussions of risk, choice, regulation, and management in subsequent chapters. Chapter 2 describes the study's methodology of ethnographic "layered access," whereby the author gained acceptance as an outsider. Chapter 3 reflects on the debates that place prostitution on a moral and philosophical plane that encompasses victimization, choice, consent, and sexual occupation. It introduces the 55 women who consented to formal interviews. Chapter 4 develops the argument that a prostitute's decision to accept or reject a client is a complex process of judging "genuineness," as sex workers use strict criteria in deciding whom to trust to honor the contract and provide a safe encounter. Chapter 5 continues the discussion of safety measures that have kept a significant number of sex workers in the study sample from having ever been victims of violence. Chapter 6 describes how the organization of prostitution is significantly influenced by its legal and social sanctions, particularly its quasi-criminalization. Chapter 7 addresses the extent of secrecy in sex workers' lives and relationships outside of work as they attempt to avoid the shame of "being discovered." Chapter 8 argues that the emotional risks of selling sex are an occupational hazard equal to any of the other risks in terms of adverse impact on the woman's life. Chapter 9 summarizes the profile of prostitution as a managed risky business. A 358-item bibliography and a subject index