Abstract
Several studies have cited economic hardships or poverty as the main reason for women’s entry into sex work in India. While this may be true, it is still a vague reason. For better understanding and to develop meaningful intervention, we need to dig deeper and find more specific reasons for women’s entry into sex work. In addition, while most studies conducted among sex workers in India rely on survey-based approaches to explore women’s reasons for entry into sex work, there have been no studies to date which have used cultural biography to examine how sex work becomes a livelihood option for women in Indian society. Based on the analysis of the 46 short-life portraits and three life-history interviews collected from ‘flying’ or mobile female sex workers over a period of 7 months (December 2009–July 2010) in Kolkata, India, this paper examines the socio-cultural and economic factors that influence women’s decisions to enter into sex work. This study found that women choose sex work vis-à-vis other employment opportunities because it provides them with more freedom and autonomy over their bodies, higher earnings, flexible hours of work, and much flexibility to manage their dual responsibilities of a nurturer and provider. Because of this complex structure of causation, HIV prevention programs must address the larger issues of workplace sexual harassment, minimum living wage and child day care policy to disincentivize women’s entry into the sex industry.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Amin, A. (2004). Risk, morality and blame: A critical analysis of government and USA donor responses to HIV infections among sex workers in India. Center for Health and Gender Equity: Takoma Park, MD.
Blanchard, J. F., O’Neil, J., Ramesh, B. M., Bhattacharjee, P., Orchard, T., & Moses, S. (2005). Understanding the social and cultural contexts of female sex workers in Karnataka, India: implications for prevention of HIV infection. The Journal of Infectious Diseases, 191(Suppl. 1), 139–146.
Chattopadhyay, M., Bandyopadhyay, S., & Duttagupta, C. (1994). Biosocial factors influencing women to become prostitutes in India. Social Biology, 41(3/4), 252–259.
Chattopadhyay, A., & McKaig, R. G. (2004). Social development of commercial sex workers in India: An essential step in HIV/AIDS prevention. AIDS Patient Care and STDs, 18(3), 159–168.
Dandona, R., Dandona, L., Gutierrez, J. P., Kumar, A. G., McPherson, S., Samuels, F., & Bertozzi, S. M. (2005). High risk of HIV in non-brothel based female sex workers in India. BMC Public Health, 587–610. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-5-87.
Devine, A., Bowen, K., Dzuvichu, B., Rungsung, R., & Kermode, M. (2010). Pathways to sex-work in Nagaland, India: Implications for HIV prevention and community mobilisation. AIDS Care, 22(2), 228–237.
Evans, C., & Lambert, H. (1997). Health-seeking strategies and sexual health among female sex workers in urban India: Implications for research and service provision. Social Science & Medicine, 44(12), 1791–1803.
Frank, G. (2000). Venus on wheels: two decades of dialogue on disability, biography, and being female in America. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Gupta, R. G. (2004). Globalization, women and the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Peace Review, 16(1), 79–83.
Gupta, J., Reed, E., Kershaw, T., & Blackenship, M. K. (2011). History of sex trafficking, recent experiences of violence, and HIV vulnerability among female sex workers in coastal Andhra Pradesh, India. International Journal of Gynaecoloy & Obstetrics, 114(2), 101–105. doi:10.1016/j.ijgo.2011.03.005.
Halli, S. S., Buzdugan, R., Moses, S., Blanchard, J., Jain, A., Verma, R., et al. (2010). High-risk sex among mobile female sex workers in the context of jatras (religious festivals) in Karnataka, India. International Journal of STD and AIDS, 21(11), 746–751.
Lawyers Collective (India). (2003). Legislating an epidemic: HIV/AIDS in India. Delhi: Universal Law.
Manopaiboon, C., Bunnelll, E. R., Kilmarx, H. P., Chaikummao, S., Limpakarnjanarat, K., Supawitkul, S., et al. (2003). Leaving sex work: Barriers, facilitating factors and consequences for female sex workers in northern Thailand. AIDS Care, 15(1), 39–52.
Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis: An expanded sourcebook. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Orchard, T., Farr, S., Macphail, S., Wender, C., & Young, D. (2012). Sex work in the forest city: experiences of sex work beginnings, types and clientele among women in London, Ontario. Sex Research Social Policy, 9, 350–362.
Pardasani, M. P. (2005). HIV prevention and sex workers: An international lesson in empowerment. International Journal of Social Welfare, 14(2), 116–126.
Petro, M. (2010) Selling sex: women's participation in the sex industry. Chapter 9 in Ditmore, M. H., Levy, A., & Willman, A. (Eds.) Sex work matters: exploring money, power and intimacy in the sex industry. London: Zed Books
Pheterson, G. (1990). The category ‘Prostitute” in scientific inquiry. The Journal of Sex Research, 27(3), 397–407.
Saggurti, N., Jain, A. K., Sebastian, M. P., Singh, R., Modugu, H. R., Halli, S. S., et al. (2012). Indicators of mobility, socio-economic vulnerabilities and HIV risk behaviors among mobile female sex workers in India. AIDS Behavior, 16(4), 952–959.
Saggurti, N., Sabarwal, S., Verma, R. K., Halli, S. S., & Jain, A. K. (2011a). Harsh realities: Reasons for women’s involvement in sex work in India. Journal of AIDS and HIV Research, 3(9), 172–179.
Saggurti, N., Verma, K. R., Halli, S. S., Swain, N. S., Singh, R., Modugu, R. H., et al. (2011b). Motivations for entry into sex work and HIV risk among mobile female sex workers in India. Journal of Biosocial Science, 43, 535–554.
Saharabuddhe, V., & Mehendale, S. (2008). Female sex workers and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in India. In R. Sahni, K. V. Shankar, & H. Apte (Eds.), Prostitution and beyond: An analysis of sex workers in India (pp. 239–260). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
UNAIDS. (2010). UNAIDS report on the global AIDS epidemic.. New York: UNAIDS
Vishwanath, J. & Palakonda, S. C. (2011). Patriarchal ideology of honour and honour crimes in India. International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 6, 386–395.
Wax, M., & Shapiro, L. J. (1956). Repeated interviewing. American Journal of Sociology, 62(2), 215–217.
Acknowledgments
Support for this study was provided by Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation Award and the Walker Institute of International Relations & Area Studies, University of South Carolina. The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not reflect the policy or position of the funding agencies. I would like to especially thank Dr. Alice Bee Kasakoff, Dr. Naomi Farber, Dr. Terry Wolfer and Dr. Darcy Freedman for providing valuable comments and feedback on this paper. In addition, I would like to thank several other people who have commented on the earlier drafts of this paper: Indulata Prasad, Ilya Issenin, and Aviral Shrivastava.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sinha, S. Reasons for Women’s Entry into Sex Work: A Case Study of Kolkata, India. Sexuality & Culture 19, 216–235 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-014-9256-z
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-014-9256-z