Sociological model of life trajectories of women involved in prostitution

Authors

  • Maia M. Rusakova St. Petersburg State University, 7–9, Universitetskaya nab., St. Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21638/spbu12.2019.303

Abstract

The history of the study of prostitution is based on acceptance of one of the explanatory models — that prostitution is violence, deviation or economic choice. The author developed an applied sociological model of the life trajectories of women involved in prostitution, based on the results of her own theoretical and empirical research and the experience of social work with women involved in prostitution. This model is the result of the integration of the sociology of life course and the ecological model. The model consists of five consecutive stages: approximation, entry, adaptation, immersion, and exit. Development of the life trajectory in prostitution occurs in a social context that can be analyzed at four levels: micro-, meso-, exo- and macro-levels. The model is based on the idea of prostitution as a multifaceted phenomenon, and the premise that women involved in prostitution are a heterogeneous group. Within the framework of this model, prostitution is viewed in a dynamic aspect, as a process of an individual’s development in certain socio-ecological contexts, as a life trajectory, which is based on a combination of previous events and circumstances that formed the “path to prostitution”. The proposed sociological model provides a general structure and knowledge base for advancing the study of prostitution; it helps to identify white spots in the study of the phenomenon of prostitution and contributes to the hypotheses. The study discusses the applied value of the model for the development of effective measures of social control of prostitution, which should take into account the existence of different stages of life in prostitution. 

Keywords:

prostitution, sexual exploitation, sex work, deviance, social control, prevention, life trajectories, ecological model

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
 

References

Литература

Романенко В. В. Трансформация социального пространства женской проституции: на примере молодых женщин, оказывающих сексуальные услуги в Санкт-Петербурге // Журнал социологии и социальной антропологии. 2015. Т. 18, № 5. С. 128–142.

Crago A. L., Rakhmetova A., Karadafov M., Islamova S., Maslova I. Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia: police raids and violence put sex workers at risk of HIV// HIV/AIDS policy & law review. 2008. Vol. 13, no. 2–3. P. 71–72.

Shannon K., Strathdee S. A., Goldenberg S. M., Duff P., Mwangi P., Rusakova M., Boily M. C. Global epidemiology of HIV among female sex workers: influence of structural determinants // The Lancet. 2015. T. 385, no. 9962. P. 55–71.

Rusakova M., Rakhmetova A., Strathdee S. A. Why are sex workers who use substances at risk for HIV? // The Lancet. 2015. T. 385, no. 9964. P. 211–212.

King E. J. et al. The influence of stigma and discrimination on female sex workers’ access to HIV services in St. Petersburg, Russia // AIDS and Behavior. 2013. T. 17, no. 8. P. 2597–2603.

Niccolai L. M., Odinokova V. A., Safiullina L. Z., Bodanovskaya Z. D., Heimer R., Levina O. S., Rusakova M. M. Clients of street-based female sex workers and potential bridging of HIV/STI in Russia: results of a pilot study // AIDS care. 2012. T. 24, no. 5. P. 665–672.

DeLisi M. Career Criminals in Society. Thousand Oaks: Sage, 2005.

Weitzer R. Flawed Theory and Method in Studies of Prostitution // Violence Against Women. 2005. No. 7. P. 934–949.

Vanwesenbeeck I. Another decade of social scientific work on sex work: a review of research 1990–2000 // Annu Rev Sex Res. 2001. Vol. 12. P. 242–289.

Русакова М. М. Научные основания эффективного социального контроля проституции: актуальное состояние и перспективные направления исследований // Вестник Санкт-Петербургского университета. 2014. Cерия 12, вып. 3. C. 218–229.

Русакова М. М. Трансформация понятия «проституция» в общественных науках в контексте социального контроля: история и современность // Вестник Санкт-Петербургского университета. 2010. Серия 12, вып. 2. С. 40–48.

Русакова М. М. Научные основания эффективного социального контроля проституции: актуальное состояние и перспективные направления исследований // Вестник Санкт-Петербургского университета. 2014. Cерия 12, вып. 3. C. 218–229.

Elder G. H. The life course as developmental theory // Child development. 1998. Vol. 69, no. 1. P. 1–12.

Catalano R. F., Hawkins J. D. The social development model: A theory of antisocial behavior // In Delinquency and Crime: Current Theories. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1996. P. 149–197.

Sampson R. J., Laub J. H. A life-course theory of cumulative disadvantage and the stability of delinquency // Developmental theories of crime and delinquency. 1997. No. 7. P. 133–161.

Bronfenbrenner U. Toward an experimental ecology of human development // American psychologist. 1977. Vol. 32, no. 7. P. 514.

Williamson C. Entrance, maintenance, and exit: The socio-economic influences and cumulative burdens of female street prostitution // Dissertation Abstracts International. 2000. Vol. 61 (02). 773A.

Vanwesenbeeck I. Prostitutes’ Well-Being and Risk. Amsterdam: VU University Press, 1994.

Månsson S. A., Hedin U. C. Breaking the Matthew effect on women leaving prostitution // International Journal of Social Welfare. 1999. Vol. 8, no. 1. P. 67–77.

Baker L. M., Dalla R. L., Williamson C. Exiting prostitution: An integrated model // Violence against women. 2012. Vol. 16, no. 5. P. 579–600.

Cimino A. N. A predictive theory of intentions to exit street-level prostitution // Violence against women. 2012. Vol. 18, no. 10. P. 1235–1252.

Ilyin V., Romanenko V. Life Trajectories in the Space of Commercial Sex // Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Science. 2013. No. 6 (11). P. 1692–1701. URL: http://elib.sfu-kras.ru/handle/2311/10107 (дата обращения: 10.02.2019).

Русакова М. М. Влияние перенесенного в детстве сексуального насилия на вовлечение женщин в проституцию // Петербургская социология сегодня: сборник научных трудов Социологического института РАН / Социологический институт РАН. СПб.: Нестор-История, 2009. С. 345–359.

Одинокова В. А., Ерицян К. Ю., Русакова М. М., Усачева Н. М. Факторы вовлечения в проституцию в несовершеннолетнем возрасте: результаты эмпирического исследования взрослых женщин // The Journal of Social Policy Studies. 2018. Vol. 17 (2). P. 267–280. doi.org/10.17323/727-0634-2019-17-2-267-280

Русакова М. М. Адаптация и погружение в жизненных траекториях женщин, вовлеченных в проституцию // Вестник Российского университета дружбы народов. Серия: Социология. 2019. Т. 19, № 1. C. 71–80.

Русакова М. М. Опыт «накопленных неудач» женщин, вовлеченных в проституцию // Вестник Санкт-Петербургского университета. Социология. 2018. Т. 11, вып. 4. С. 439–454. doi.org/10.21638/spbu12.2018.404

Русакова М. М., Яковлева А. А. Региональная специфика современной российской проституции (на примере Санкт-Петербурга и Оренбурга) // Петербургская социология сегодня: сборник научных трудов Социологического института РАН. СПб.: Нестор-История, 2010.


References

Romanenko V. V. The transformation of the social space of female prostitution: the example of commercial sex workers in St. Petersburg. Zhurnal sotsiologii i sotsial’noi antropologii, 2015, vol. 18, no. 5, pp. 128–142. (In Russian)

Crago A. L., Rakhmetova A., Karadafov M., Islamova S., Maslova I. Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia: police raids and violence put sex workers at risk of HIV. HIV/AIDS policy & law review, 2008, vol. 13, no. 2–3, pp. 71–72.

Shannon K., Strathdee S. A., Goldenberg S. M., Duff P., Mwangi P., Rusakova M., Boily M. C. Global epidemiology of HIV among female sex workers: influence of structural determinants. The Lancet, 2015, vol. 385, no. 9962, pp. 55–71.

Rusakova M., Rakhmetova A., Strathdee S. A. Why are sex workers who use substances at risk for HIV? The Lancet, 2015, vol. 385, no. 9964, pp. 211–212.

King E. J. et al. The influence of stigma and discrimination on female sex workers’ access to HIV services in St. Petersburg. AIDS and Behavior, 2013, vol. 17, no. 8, pp. 2597–2603.

Niccolai L. M., Odinokova V. A., Safiullina L. Z., Bodanovskaya Z. D., Heimer R., Levina O. S., Rusakova M. M. Clients of street-based female sex workers and potential bridging of HIV/STI in Russia: results of a pilot study. AIDS care, 2012, vol. 24, no. 5, pp. 665–672.

DeLisi M. Career Criminals in Society. Thousand Oaks, Sage, 2005.

Weitzer R. Flawed Theory and Method in Studies of Prostitution. Violence Against Women, 2005, no. 7, pp. 934–949.

Vanwesenbeeck I. Another decade of social scientific work on sex work: a review of research 1990–2000. Annu Rev Sex Res, 2001, vol. 12, pp. 242–289.

Rusakova M. M. Scientific basis for effective social control of prostitution: current status and promising areas of research. Vestnik of Saint-Petersburg University, Series 12, 2014, is. 3, pp. 218–229. (In Russian)

Rusakova M. M. Transformation of the concept of “prostitution” in the social sciences in the context of social control: history and modernity. Vestnik of Saint-Petersburg University, Series 12, 2010, is. 2, pp. 40–48. (In Russian)

Rusakova M. M. Scientific basis for effective social control of prostitution: current status and promising areas of research. Vestnik of Saint-Petersburg University, Series 12, 2014, is. 3, pp. 218–229. (In Russian)

Elder G. H. The life course as developmental theory. Child development, 1998, vol. 69, no. 1, pp. 1–12.

Catalano R. F., Hawkins J. D. The social development model: A theory of antisocial behavior. In Delinquency and Crime: Current Theories. New York, Cambridge Univ. Press, 1996, pp. 149–197.

Sampson R. J., Laub J. H. A life-course theory of cumulative disadvantage and the stability of delinquency. Developmental theories of crime and delinquency, 1997, no. 7, pp. 133–161.

Bronfenbrenner U. Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American psychologist, 1997, vol. 32, no. 7, p. 514.

Williamson C. Entrance, maintenance, and exit: The socio-economic influences and cumulative burdens of female street prostitution. Dissertation Abstracts International, 2000, vol. 61 (02), 773A.

Vanwesenbeeck I. Prostitutes’ Well-Being and Risk. Amsterdam, VU University Press, 1994.

Månsson S. A., Hedin U. C. Breaking the Matthew effect–on women leaving prostitution. International Journal of Social Welfare, 1999, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 67–77.

Baker L. M., Dalla R. L., Williamson C. Exiting prostitution: An integrated model. Violence against women, 2012, vol. 16, no. 5, pp. 579–600.

Cimino A. N. A predictive theory of intentions to exit street-level prostitution. Violence against women, 2012, vol. 18, no. 10, pp. 1235–1252.

Ilyin V., Romanenko V. Life Trajectories in the Space of Commercial Sex. Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Science, 2013, no. 6 (11), pp. 1692–1701. URL: http://elib.sfu-kras.ru/handle/2311/10107 (accessed: 10.02.2019).

Rusakova M. M. The impact of sexual abuse in childhood on the involvement of women in prostitution. Peterbugskaya sociologia segodnya: sbornik nauchnykh trudov Sociologicheskogo instituta RAN. St. Petersburg, Nestor-Istoriia Publ., 2009, pp. 345–359. (In Russian)

Odinokova V. A., Yeritsyan K. Yu., Rusakova M. M., Usacheva N. M. Factors of involvement in prostitution in the minor age: the results of an empirical study of adult women. The Journal of Social Policy Studies, 2018, vol. 17 (2), pp. 267–280. doi: 10.17323/727-0634-2019-17-2-267-280. (In Russian)

Rusakova M. M. Adaptation and immersion in the life trajectories of women involved in prostitution. RUDN Journal of Sociology, 2019, vol. 19 (1), pp. 71–80. doi.org/10.22363/2313-2272-2019-19-1-71-80. (In Russian)

Rusakova M. M. The experience of “accumulated failures” of women involved in prostitution. Vestnik of St. Petersburg University, 2018, no. 11 (4), pp. 439–454. doi.org/10.21638/spbu12.2018.404. (In Russian)

Rusakova M. M., Yakovleva A. A. Regional specificity of modern Russian prostitution (on the example of St. Petersburg and Orenburg). Peterbugskaya sociologia segodnya: sbornik nauchnykh trudov Sociologicheskogo instituta RAN. St. Petersburg, Nestor-Istoriia Publ., 2010. (In Russian)

Published

2019-10-04

How to Cite

Rusakova, M. M. . (2019). Sociological model of life trajectories of women involved in prostitution. Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. Sociology, 12(3), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.21638/spbu12.2019.303

Issue

Section

Social Problems of the Russian Society