Prostitution in times of economic crisis: effects, human agency and societal responses

In times of economic hardship both formal and informal economy are affected. The paper begins by inspecting the characteristics of the informal economy, some of which may act as disadvantages as well as advantages, addressing prostitution as one type of informal economic activity. Looking at the available data, we then observe in which way and to what extent the current global financial crisis has affected the informal economy, in general, and prostitution, in particular. Next, we examine the agency and strategies of the individual within the unregulated, often illegal and certainly vulnerable economic space of prostitution by describing some existing cases as expressions of agency of a class of persons often regarded as passive victims. Lastly, we turn to the societal reaction towards prostitution, which codetermines the social structure within which the agent U+2013 the prostitute acts. The paper concludes with some observations on future trends, appealing to a reasonable and emphatic policy-making in the area of prostitution, and offers some suggestions for future policy-making and research.

Publication year:2012