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Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 1

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING

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LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 2

Literature Review for Sex Trafficking

Introduction

Sex trafficking, just like slavery, is the illegal smuggling and trading of people for sexual

exploitation and forced labor. Those in a position to exploit the vulnerable recruit them through

coercion and deception.

This literature review studies and gives an account of the experience and the medical

health problems of the victims of sex trafficking as a form of modern slavery in the United

States. The current literature sources available have a deficit in the psychosomatic accounts of

the victims’ experience and narrations as they mainly put more emphasis on policies and

regulations. It is, therefore, a concern as it limits the knowledge of health care providers in their

efforts to handle the survivors. Besides, this review gives information that is required to outline

precisely the recruiting process of children and young people into sex trafficking, the stages, and

the possible health issues and detriments they endure.

Methodology

Social Causes

Poverty is the leading cause of sex trade, according to Cecchet and Thorburn (2013).

According to the United Nations assessments, women do most of the work, yet they only possess

1 percent of the world’s total property. It is due to unemployment that the poverty rate in women

is higher than in men (Cecchet & Thoburn, 2013). The lowered status and limited economic

opportunities result to women being vulnerable to sex trafficking and prostitution (Cecchet &

Thoburn, 2013). Poverty and homelessness propel the fact that children would be forced to trade

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 3

for sex out of desperation so as to meet their basic needs such as shelter, food, and drugs (Choi,

2015).

The financial crisis is a global cause of human trafficking. Millions of people globally are

in an economic predicament that has resulted in agencies reporting an increase in human

trafficking. Hillary Clinton noted, “This year there is a new urgency, the economic crisis fuels

human trafficking in Cambodia.” (Constant, Madriñan, & Capaldi, 2010, p. 10). Similarly,

women have opted to abandon their jobs of low pay and long working hours, to join sex trade.

The rising demand for cheap sexual services has resulted to the sexualization of females

is the core factor influencing sex trafficking as it favors and targets young people. The

sexualization of girls results to a perception that they are sex objects by the society, which leads

to sexual harassment such as pornography (Hardy, Compton, & McPhatter, 2013).

Gender and racism are cultural factors influencing human and sex trafficking (Cecchet &

Thoburn, 2013). Gender is a crucial element of sex promoted by women’s treatment, adaptation

and how they cope with cultural values and norms. African Americans are observed to be more

victimized to compromise their study and fall prey to the sex trade in tender ages (Cecchet &

Thoburn, 2013).

Others causes of sex trafficking include; family neglect, inadequate protection, social

conflicts and natural calamities that expose children to inefficient mechanisms of protection

(Constant, Madriñan, & Capaldi, 2010)

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 4

Stages of the Trafficking process

Fig. 1. Conceptual model: Stages of the human trafficking process. Adapted from “Human

trafficking and health: A conceptual model to inform policy, intervention and research”

by Zimmerman, C., Hossain, M., & Watts, C. (2011).. Social Sciences and Medicine,

327-335.

In the recruitment stage, vulnerable people fall to deception, job offers and even

abduction for exploitation by close individuals or employment and travel agencies. The

trafficking stage starts when one departs the point of transit and to the location of exploitation.

Detention stage is a period when the victims of sex trafficking agree to collaborate with the

police, are detained or are in the custody of the state authorities. Prison facilities are unhygienic

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 5

exposing those in official custody to health and safety risks. In Integration and reintegration

stages, one finds difficulty in assimilating to be a host in a particular country as they have not

oriented to be active members of its economic, cultural and political life. Re-trafficking

according to Zimmerman, Hossain and Watts (2011), results from unemployment and financial

crisis that makes people accept offers from traffickers.

Clinical Risks

Zimmerman, Hossain and Watts (2011) suggest that the risks and health consequences of

the trafficked begin even before the trafficking process of recruitment. It continues throughout

the process as people endure exploitation, and even gets worse when they are free from ‘slavery.’

Mental Harm

Psychological health practitioners need more insight to understand the effects of sex

trafficking on youths, as they are the most vulnerable group during their adolescent stage (Hardy,

Compton, & McPhatter, 2013). According to Choi (2015), mental health disorders are highly

predominant in DMST victims, which include post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, and

psychoticism. Victims may develop drug addiction trauma experiences, and sometimes

Stockholm syndromes. “Because I was a virgin, the men who brought me to the US to work as a

prostitute initiated me by raping me again and again,” says 14 year old Rosa (Ginty, 2015).

Physical Harm

Human trafficking leads to physical and sexual detriments and subjects the victims to

marginalization, occupational, and legal restrictions and difficulties (Zimmerman, Hossain, &

Watts, 2011). Tina Frundt, a former child prostitute, was beaten for accusing her pimp of

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 6

breaking her arm. “When I said ‘you broke my arm,’ he hit me and asked me again. I had to say I

fell.” (Ginty, 2015). Also, according to Zimmerman, Hossain and Watts (2011), psychological

disorders, Sexual, and reproductive health constraints are experienced by those subjected to early

childhood sexual abuse. Victims are not given access to health services unless the condition is

debilitating. Furthermore, medical health in some settings is offered by unqualified personnel,

leading severe injuries and sometimes death.

Conclusion

To address trafficking risks, countries across the sector should intervene and coordinate

to enhance protection of victims and their recovery process.

Solutions and Recommendations

Developing knowledge and understanding of significant issues relating to child sex

trafficking and raising concerns through the global advocacy platforms will help in mitigating

sex trafficking (Constant, Madriñan, & Capaldi, 2010). Information is vital in building awareness

and assessing a countries progress in filling the gaps and enlightening the entire public on the

actions to be taken universally in fighting sex trade. Governments need to adopt action strategies

that will address the problem through individual participation in prevention programs such as

Community Awareness Programs, so as to reach to the most vulnerable population.

Future research

Further study is required to enlighten health practitioners of the relationship that exists

between sexual trafficking and its health risk factors (Hardy, Compton, & McPhatter, 2013).

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 7

Finally, nurses require continued education and support to interact and identify victims of sex

trafficking at a risk of trauma and to find ways to report child abuse and trafficking (Choi, 2015).

LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SEX TRAFICKING 8

References

Cecchet, S. J., & Thoburn, J. (2013). The Psychological Experience of Child and Adolescent Sex Trafficking

in the United States: Trauma and Resilience in Survivors. Psychological Trauma.

Choi, K. R. (2015). Risk factors for domestic minor sex trafficking in the United States: a literature review

. Journal of Forensic Science.

Constant, S., Madriñan, C., & Capaldi, M. (2010). Monitoring State Progress to Protect Children and

Young People From Trafficking for Sexual Purposes. Bangkok: The Body Shop International PLC.

Ginty, M. M. (2015). Protecting the Powerless: Child Trafficking in the United States . National Council of

Jewish Women.

Hardy, V. L., Compton, K. D., & McPhatter, V. S. (2013). Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: Practice

Implications for Mental Health Proffesionals. Journal of Women and Social Work.

Zimmerman, C., Hossain, M., & Watts, C. (2011). Human trafficking and health: A conceptual model to

inform policy, intervention and research. Social Sciences and Medicine, 327-335.

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