Open AccessThe Influence of Significant Others on the Course of the Process of Leaving Sex Work
Author(s) -
Izabela Ślęzak
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
przegląd socjologii jakościowej
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1733-8069
DOI - 10.18778/1733-8069.11.3.08
Subject(s) - sex work , work (physics) , process (computing) , identity (music) , psychology , qualitative research , social psychology , sociology , gender studies , public relations , political science , engineering , social science , medicine , mechanical engineering , physics , family medicine , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , computer science , acoustics , operating system
The purpose of the article is to present the barriers to leaving sex work which are related to the influence of significant others on decisions made by sex workers. The analysis was applied in the case of two categories of significant others (organizational and intimate), which through interactions in escort agencies and on family grounds, respectively, may exert a destructive influence on sex workers’ intentions, referring to their life and the act of leaving sex work. Therefore, the relationships with significant others described in the article interfere in the process of these women’s identity transformation, hindering the development of a self-concept outside prostitution. The article is based on qualitative research carried out in escort agencies in one of the biggest Polish cities.