I'm NOT For Sale

https://ordinaryevil.files.wordpress.com

ECONOMIC PRINCIPLE: People respond to incentives in predictable ways.

THESIS: People’s response to incentives are affected by costs and benefits, and according to my research, are also influenced by psychological and economical factors.

SYNTHESIS PARAGRAPH: In my past blog posts, I was able to understand the relationship between psychological and economic factors and how they play a major role in the sex trafficking market. I also understood the many different costs and benefits to the trade. The biggest incentive to become  involved in the sex economy is the economic gains. According to an interview on PBS, a national non-profit news organization, “the underground sex market in each of seven U.S. cities generates between $40 million to almost $300 million a year.” These economic gains is a benefit that outweighs the cost. A lot of people do not have the opportunity to have a college degree or a high paying job, and sometimes involving in the sex economy is the best option for them in order to provide the most money to survive. According to Allan Schwartz a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Ph.D on the Mental Help website, “There are many reasons for women becoming sex workers and escorts. Some of these women have stated that they are attracted by the large sums of money they can earn while they are still young. Others see it as a way to pay for university education and further advancement.” Getting involved in sex trade is more profitable, possibly making thousands of dollars a night, than a low wage job. Sex trafficking is a clear example of the cost-benefit analysis because for some people, The income benefit outweighs the risks of HIV, pregnancy, and the risk of becoming trapped in this trade. Above, I summarized the economic side of the trade and how the incentive of profit gains influences the cost-benefit analysis. The last piece to the puzzle is figuring out where the psychology of this trade comes into place. According to Jonathan Van Dyke in a recent article called, “Psychological Warfare Propels Human Sex Trafficking World,” there are two different types of pimps controlling the sex trafficking economy; Gorilla pimps and Romeo pimps. Gorilla pimps demand a certain amount of money, and if the prostitute does not make the quota, she will most likely be beaten and held from basic amenities such as food and clothing. These threats that the pimps make make the girls feel trapped because they know if they try to escape, they will be severely beaten, or worse. Romeo pimps will treat the prostitute more like a girlfriend upfront and the relationship often will start like boyfriend and girlfriend, before turning intense and violent. There is even a honeymoon period where the pimp will buy the young victim dinner, clothes, cellphones and jewelry (Dyke). These Romeo pimps give a false love to these girls and because of that, their brain tells them that they will be able to work things out when the relationship gets messy. So many women are trapped into this trade because of the psychological brainwashing tactics the pimps use on their victims. In closing, in order to diminish the trade, programs need to be set up to stop the demand in the sex market. The only way the supply will decrease, is if the demand from sweatshop or brothel owners and clients of sex workers decreases. On the Global Centurion Foundation website, it provides an idea to help decrease the demand. For example, “by creating “front-end” programs that are designed to reach young men and boys before they become part of the sex industry, and by targeting the “back-end” of demand –  predators and exploiters — for arrest, prosecution, and successful conviction, Global Centurion will help to eliminate the demand fueling this crime.” By decreasing demand we can decrease supply, and hopefully this awful trade will one day diminish. By doing this project, I have a much better understanding of what the sex trafficking market is, the costs and benefits of the trade and how it influences people to get involved, and how the psychology of this trade plays a major role in this trade as well as the economics of the trade.

Diminish the Demand, Diminish the Trade

http://www.mtholyoke.edu

How do we eliminate a trade that has been going on for so many years? Is it even possible to completely abolish a type of slavery? In this blog post I will try to discover if the horrid sex trafficking could be eliminated. In order to do this I will need to look at the demand side of sex trafficking. I argue that if the demand diminished for good, then supply would also diminish resulting in a cease of the trade.

Many people fail to acknowledge the demand side of this trade and focus too heavily on the supply end of the spectrum. But it’s basic economics, the only way the supply will decrease is if the demand decreases. According to the Human Trafficking website “The demand side of trafficking, which includes, for example, sweatshop or brothel owners, and clients of sex workers, is often neglected by trafficking prevention programs.” This point is reiterated on the Global Centurion Foundation website when it states, “Human trafficking involves a triangle of activity: supply, demand, and distribution. Since the passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in 2000, the focus has been on the rescue, rehabilitation, and restoration of victims. While these efforts are important, it is also important to target the demand side of the equation.” Global Centurion also proposes ideas to combat the demand of human sex trafficking. For example, “by creating “front-end” programs that are designed to reach young men and boys before they become part of the sex industry, and by targeting the “back-end” of demand –  predators and exploiters — for arrest, prosecution, and successful conviction, Global Centurion will help to eliminate the demand fueling this crime.” I think that this example shows that if we put in the effort and use the right tools, we could help diminish the demand. I do not think that these ideas will completely stop the demand, but it will greatly help to diminish the trade

Beyond this, we also need to do a better job by setting up strict government regulations in order to diminish the demand to help diminish the trade. According to the Soroptimist website, “By tolerating or legalizing prostitution, the state, at least passively, is contributing to the demand for victims. The more states regulate prostitution and derive tax revenue from it, the more actively they become part of the demand for victims.” I think that if there were stricter laws worldwide against this trade with greater punishments, then the demand would decrease and the trade would slowly diminish. It is also hard to diminish a trade where we live in a  world with, “The culture, particular mass media, is playing a large role in normalizing prostitution by portraying prostitution as glamorous or a way to quickly make a lot of money,” according to the same source. If we were able to abolish slavery as a country, we should be able to abolish this type of sex slavery. By putting our efforts together and targeting the demand aspect to this type of trade as well as the supply, I think that we would be able to diminish this trade.

Future Post: In my final blog post I will summarize everything I've learned so far by addressing the economics, the supply, and the demand to sex trafficking and addressing the psychological aspects to it.

The Psychology Behind Sex Trafficking

http://www.freedomcongress.org/

Not only is there an economy for sex trade, but also the reason why sex trafficking continues to go on is because of the Psychology behind it. I became interested in this topic during my Psychology class first semester when my teacher explained to us that there is a relationship between economics and psychology when it comes to sex trade. In this blog post, I argue that the psychology behind the sex trade makes people feel trapped and therefore the trade is only growing.

According to Jonathan Van Dyke in a recent article called, “Psychological Warfare Propels Human Sex Trafficking World,” Dyke argues that  “The brainwashing that has been done is unbelievable — this psychological warfare the pimps have done with these girls.” The brainwashing is done by the pimps and Dyke describes that there are two different types of pimps. The Gorilla pimps demand a certain amount of money, and if the prostitute does not make the quota, she will most likely be beaten and held from basic amenities such as food and clothing. So therefore, they will do everything they can in order to meet their quota so they are not beaten and without basic needs. These threats that the pimps make make the girls feel trapped because they know if they try to escape, they will be severely beaten, or worse. The other type of pimp that Dyke describes is the Romeo pimps. These pimps will treat the prostitute more like a girlfriend upfront and the relationship often will start like boyfriend and girlfriend, before turning intense and violent. There is even a honeymoon period where the pimp will buy the young victim dinner, clothes, cellphones and jewelry (Dyke). These Romeo pimps give a false love to these girls and because of that, their brain tells them that they will be able to work things out when the relationship gets messy. It’s human nature and behavior to desire to be wanted or loved and once these girls feel this from these pimps, they have a hard time escaping when things get abusive because they keep telling themselves that the relationship will get back to what it was at the beginning. Denial, is a defense mechanism and most of these girls involved with Romeo pimps deny that there is a problem.

In another article in “Psychology Today” by Dale Archer, it shows examples of three girls who were brain-washed into the sex trade.Kara Nichols, Kayla Croft-Payne, and Raven Cassidy Furlong, all had certain things in common. According to Archer, “All three have one thing in common: They were young, pretty, in contact with men online and were tempted with modeling work. This is a classic case here in the US. Young women are targeted because of their vulnerability. Jobs like modeling, dancing, or being a nanny for a wealthy family are dangled. They are promised exciting work with good pay, and a meeting is set up where they are abducted and transported- typically to a large city where no one knows them. They are addicted to drugs and then forced into prostitution, with abhorrent living conditions and frequent beatings.” As you can see, these pimps know how to control the psychology behind these women and lure them in by promising well-paying jobs. Not only is sex trade flourishing because of the economics behind it, but also because of the psychological brainwashing tactics the pimps use on their victims. 

Future Research: In my next blog post I plan to research the factors for the supply of prostitution and sex trafficking.

The Economics Behind Sex Trafficking

http://thesamaritanwomen.org

Many of us, including me, wonder why horrible things happen to people, for example sex trafficking. Why are the women and children of the world being sold for their bodies? It’s hard to understand why this has continued to go on, but once exploring the economy of the sex trafficking business, it is clear that that the revenue from this form of slavery is the reason women have continued to be exploited. In this blog post, I argue that the economy of sex trafficking is growing because their is revenue made for the hotel rooms needed, the drivers necessary, and the women’s bodies. According to an interview on PBS, a national non-profit news organization, “the underground sex market in each of seven U.S. cities generates between $40 million to almost $300 million a year.” As you can see, this high profit is a reason why this sext market is only growing.

Imagine flying into Atlanta, Georgia to watch the Atlanta Thrashers play the Blackhawks in a hockey game. You are alone and female. Once you arrive you are suddenly kidnapped into the sex market. You get into a cab, dropped off at a hotel, and are rushed into a hotel room and then controlled by a man. During this process, transactions are being made by the cab, hotel room, and the person that’s making the one transaction for sex and for money. But this isn’t just happening to the woman arriving in Atlanta for the hockey game, but it’s happening to thousands of people in Atlanta alone and is the reason why they brought in about $290 million from the sex market in 2007, according to a study done by The Urban Institute discussed in the PBS interview.

Unfortunately, sex trafficking has become like a small business structure. This inhumane form of slavery is done out of the greed for economic revenue. And as of now, this trade will continue to go on, especially with access to the internet. Now 50% of pimps use the help of the internet to maximize their profits. It sickens me that this horrifying trade goes on, it undermines women and makes them feel powerless. I wonder why anyone would treat a woman so poorly and not out of the respect she deserves, but men are drawn by their own greediness especially after seeing that sex markets draw in hundreds of millions of dollars a year in every major city. 

FUTURE RESEARCH: In my next blog post I plan on researching the Psychology behind the sex trafficking market.

The Exploitation of Sex Trafficking

Source: www.theheartsofhope.org

• KEY ECONOMIC PRINCIPLES I’M ADDRESSING:
• Institutions are the “rules of the game” that influence choices
• People gain when they trade voluntarily
• People respond to incentives in predictable ways
• OVERALL RESEARCH QUESTION: What is the relationship between psychology and economics in sex trafficking?
• SUB QUESTIONS
• What are the factors for the supply and demand of sex trafficking?
• What is the psychology behind sex trafficking?
• How does economics play a role in sex trafficking?
• Where is sex trafficking most prevalent?
• Is it possible to eliminate this trade?
• RESOURCES FOR RESEARCH:
• DATABASES:
• Global Issues in Context
• Opposing Viewpoints in Context
• WEBSITES:
• http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/05/slavery.aspx
• https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/why-bad-looks-good/201401/human-trafficking-psychology-recruitment
• http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/tracking-scope-u-s-underground-sex-trade/
• https://www.amherst.edu/media/view/247221/original/Economics+of+Human+Trafficking.pdf