Projects / Programmes
Occupational risks in sex work at the intersections of policy framework and social stigma (ORIS)
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 5.03.00 |
Social sciences |
Sociology |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 5.04 |
Social Sciences |
Sociology |
sex work, occupational risks, stigma, policies, human rights
Researchers (10)
Organisations (2)
Abstract
Scientific background The project is grounded on the findings from the literature on sex work that exclusionary policies and stigmatization of prostitution disempower sex workers, deprive them from human and labour rights and create contexts for their exploitation (Kempadoo & Doezema 1998; Augustín 2007; Graham 2017). The main research thesis is that occupational risks in sex work are being formed at the intersections policy framework and prostitution stigma. We specifically focus on prostitution as one of the sectors within the sex industry, which we approach from the perspective of work and harm reduction. The emphasis is on developing a methodological and theoretical framework that foregrounds voices and interests of sex workers and to investigate pathways to their empowerment - increased agency, autonomy and human rights - through policy building and policy execution. Problem definition 1. Sex workers in Slovenia are a marginalized and discriminated social group excluded from public life, spaces and the creation of state policies. 2. Considering prostitution theory and research, Slovenia is globally an underrepresented country. 3. Policy framework on prostitution is not oriented after the needs of sex workers and is not informed by research. Relevance, research aims and impact The project aims to strengthen an underdeveloped research field of sex work with development and execution of an inclusive methodology and with building of a theoretical framework, which will interrelate the concepts of occupational risks, policy framework and stigma. Project’s key objective is to conduct a basic scientific research on prostitution in Slovenia, which will a) present empirically based estimations on the prevalence of occupational risks and needs of sex workers and examine the relation of occupational risks to the concept of “governing through crime” (Simon 2007). b) explore how stigma is reproduced through policy, institutions and assistance programs and implement the concept of “policy inclusiveness” (Östergren 2017). By enhancing the understanding of occupational risks in sex work, we aim to move the focus of the research and policy making from criminalization and control of sex workers to enhancement of their agency and human rights and contribute to the adoption of an inclusive, comprehensive and multidimensional policy on sex work in Slovenia. Originality and research methods The project in particular contributes to the field of research on occupational risks in sex work, which is in the literature rare, while in Slovenia this approach has not yet been applied. The research will be the first in Slovenia to provide mapping of the prostitution sector and to present empirically based estimations on the prevalence of occupational risk and needs of sex workers. An inclusive methodological and theoretical framework will be developed with the goal to enhance the understanding of victimization and agency in sex work. The study uses the “mixed methods’ approach”. Its initial phase (WS1) uses the methods of meta-analysis and literature review to systematically show the results of previous studies on prostitution in Slovenia and the methodologies used. In the second phase (WS2) a quantitative research method will be applied (online survey) for the first time in prostitution research in Slovenia, with the goal to ensure estimations on occupational risks in sex work. For mapping of the sector the method of data analysis will be applied. The qualitative method of focus groups will include sex workers in the process of methodology development and interpretation of the results. In WS3 qualitative methods (socio-legal analysis and interviews) will be applied to reveal the complex relations between policy texts and their implementation, stigma and the lives of sex workers. A strong emphasis is on the dissemination of the results (WS4) nationally and globally.
