Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa

dc.contributor.authorJewkes, Rachelen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorMorrell, Roberten_ZA
dc.contributor.authorSikweyiya, Yandisaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorDunkle, Kristinen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorPenn-Kekana, Lovedayen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2016-01-11T06:49:21Z
dc.date.available2016-01-11T06:49:21Z
dc.date.issued2012en_ZA
dc.description.abstractBACKGROUND: South African policy makers are reviewing legislation of prostitution, concerned that criminalisation hampers HIV prevention. They seek to understand the relationship between transactional sex, prostitution, and the nature of the involved men. METHODS: 1645 randomly-selected adult South African men participated in a household study, disclosing whether they had sex with a woman in prostitution or had had a provider relationship (or sex), participation in crime and violence and completing psychological measures. These became outcomes in multivariable regression models, where the former were exposure variables. RESULTS: 51% of men had had a provider relationship and expected sex in return, 3% had had sex with a woman in prostitution, 15% men had done both of these and 31% neither. Provider role men, and those who had just had sex with a woman in prostitution, were socially conservative and quite violent. Yet the men who had done both (75% of those having sex with a woman in prostitution) were significantly more misogynist, highly scoring on dimensions of psychopathy, more sexually and physically violent to women, and extensively engaged in crime. They had often bullied at school, suggesting that this instrumental, self-seeking masculinity was manifest in childhood. The men who had not engaged in sex for economic exchange expressed a much less violent, more law abiding and gender equitable masculinity; challenging assumptions about the inevitability of intersections of age, poverty, crime and misogyny. CONCLUSIONS: Provider role relationships (or sex) are normative for low income men, but not having sex with a woman in prostitution. Men who do the latter operate extensively outside the law and their violence poses a substantial threat to women. Those drafting legislation and policy on the sex industry in South Africa need to distinguish between these two groups to avoid criminalising the normal, and consider measures to protect women.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationJewkes, R., Morrell, R., Sikweyiya, Y., Dunkle, K., & Penn-Kekana, L. (2012). Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa. <i>PLoS One</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16232en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationJewkes, Rachel, Robert Morrell, Yandisa Sikweyiya, Kristin Dunkle, and Loveday Penn-Kekana "Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa." <i>PLoS One</i> (2012) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16232en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationJewkes, R., Morrell, R., Sikweyiya, Y., Dunkle, K., & Penn-Kekana, L. (2012). Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa. PLoS ONE, 7(7), e40821. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0040821en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Journal Article AU - Jewkes, Rachel AU - Morrell, Robert AU - Sikweyiya, Yandisa AU - Dunkle, Kristin AU - Penn-Kekana, Loveday AB - BACKGROUND: South African policy makers are reviewing legislation of prostitution, concerned that criminalisation hampers HIV prevention. They seek to understand the relationship between transactional sex, prostitution, and the nature of the involved men. METHODS: 1645 randomly-selected adult South African men participated in a household study, disclosing whether they had sex with a woman in prostitution or had had a provider relationship (or sex), participation in crime and violence and completing psychological measures. These became outcomes in multivariable regression models, where the former were exposure variables. RESULTS: 51% of men had had a provider relationship and expected sex in return, 3% had had sex with a woman in prostitution, 15% men had done both of these and 31% neither. Provider role men, and those who had just had sex with a woman in prostitution, were socially conservative and quite violent. Yet the men who had done both (75% of those having sex with a woman in prostitution) were significantly more misogynist, highly scoring on dimensions of psychopathy, more sexually and physically violent to women, and extensively engaged in crime. They had often bullied at school, suggesting that this instrumental, self-seeking masculinity was manifest in childhood. The men who had not engaged in sex for economic exchange expressed a much less violent, more law abiding and gender equitable masculinity; challenging assumptions about the inevitability of intersections of age, poverty, crime and misogyny. CONCLUSIONS: Provider role relationships (or sex) are normative for low income men, but not having sex with a woman in prostitution. Men who do the latter operate extensively outside the law and their violence poses a substantial threat to women. Those drafting legislation and policy on the sex industry in South Africa need to distinguish between these two groups to avoid criminalising the normal, and consider measures to protect women. DA - 2012 DB - OpenUCT DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0040821 DP - University of Cape Town J1 - PLoS One LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2012 T1 - Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa TI - Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16232 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0040821en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/16232
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationJewkes R, Morrell R, Sikweyiya Y, Dunkle K, Penn-Kekana L. Men, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africa. PLoS One. 2012; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16232.en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisherPublic Library of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentResearch Officeen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyThe Enterpriseen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.rightsThis is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.en_ZA
dc.rights.holder© 2012 Jewkes et alen_ZA
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0en_ZA
dc.sourcePLoS Oneen_ZA
dc.source.urihttp://journals.plos.org/plosoneen_ZA
dc.subject.otherViolent crimeen_ZA
dc.subject.otherRape and sexual assaulten_ZA
dc.subject.otherAfricansen_ZA
dc.subject.otherWeaponsen_ZA
dc.subject.otherBehavioren_ZA
dc.subject.otherSchoolsen_ZA
dc.subject.otherIntimate partner violenceen_ZA
dc.subject.otherSouth Africaen_ZA
dc.titleMen, prostitution and the provider role: understanding the intersections of economic exchange, sex, crime and violence in South Africaen_ZA
dc.typeJournal Articleen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceArticleen_ZA
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