Journal of Urban Health

, Volume 93, Issue 6, pp 1010–1026 | Cite as

Early Sex Work Initiation and Violence against Female Sex Workers in Mombasa, Kenya

  • Angela M. Parcesepe
  • Kelly L. L’Engle
  • Sandra L. Martin
  • Sherri Green
  • Chirayath Suchindran
  • Peter Mwarogo
Article
First Online:

Abstract

Between 20 and 40 % of female sex workers (FSWs) began sex work before age 18. Little is known concerning whether early initiation of sex work impacts later experiences in adulthood, including violence victimization. This paper examines the relationship between early initiation of sex work and violence victimization during adulthood. The sample included 816 FSWs in Mombasa, Kenya, recruited from HIV prevention drop-in centers who were 18 years or older and moderate-risk drinkers. Early initiation was defined as beginning sex work at 17 or younger. Logistic regression modeled recent violence as a function of early initiation, adjusting for drop-in center, age, education, HIV status, supporting others, and childhood abuse. Twenty percent of the sample reported early initiation of sex work. Although both early initiators and other FSWs reported commonly experiencing recent violence, early initiators were significantly more likely to experience recent physical and sexual violence and verbal abuse from paying partners. Early initiation was not associated with physical or sexual violence from non-paying partners. Many FSWs begin sex work before age 18. Effective interventions focused on preventing this are needed. In addition, interventions are needed to prevent violence against all FSWs, in particular, those who initiated sex work during childhood or adolescence.

Keywords

Sex work Violence Adolescence Africa 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Public Health Evaluation (PHE) component of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), PHE #KE09.0235. Funding was provided through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), under the terms of AID-623-A-11-00007. Dr. Parcesepe is supported by Award Number T32 MH019139 (principal investigator, Theodorus Sandfort, Ph.D.) from the National Institute of Mental Health. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Mental Health or the National Institutes of Health. The authors are grateful to Samuel Field for statistical consultation and to Ilene Speizer and Audrey Pettifor for thoughtful feedback on early drafts of this manuscript.

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Copyright information

© The New York Academy of Medicine 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • Angela M. Parcesepe
    • 1
    • 5
  • Kelly L. L’Engle
    • 2
  • Sandra L. Martin
    • 1
  • Sherri Green
    • 1
  • Chirayath Suchindran
    • 3
  • Peter Mwarogo
    • 4
  1. 1.Department of Maternal and Child Health, Gillings School of Global Public HealthUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUSA
  2. 2.Population Health Sciences, School of Nursing and Health ProfessionsUniversity of San FranciscoSan FranciscoUSA
  3. 3.Department of Biostatistics, Gillings School of Global Public HealthUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUSA
  4. 4.FHI 360NairobiKenya
  5. 5.HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral StudiesColumbia University and New York State Psychiatric InstituteNew YorkUSA

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