Perceptions of college students in Costa Rica about prostitution

Perceptions of college students in Costa Rica about prostitution

Authors

  • Elizabeth Izaguirre St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN
  • Julián Monge-Nájera Laboratorio de Ecología Urbana, UNED, San José, Costa Rica

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v8i1.1223

Keywords:

Sex work, sex trafficking, how media present prostitution, reality versus fiction, college students

Abstract

The view that college students have about prostitution is poorly known, and the little research that is available has been done in the USA and Spain. To study the perceptions and knowledge of college students about prostitution in Costa Rica, we interviewed sex workers, directors of foundations and 200 students from San José and Puntarenas, Costa Rica. Most students have a fairly realistic view of the phenomenon; most believe that people enter sex work through a combination of need and choice, that sex abuse is not inherent, that most sex workers have families to take care of with limited education. In regards to the clients most students believe the majority are varied in age, tend to have families and often become regulars. Our results are similar to those reported for Spain.

Author Biographies

Elizabeth Izaguirre, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN

 St. Olaf College, 1500 Saint Olaf Ave Northfield, MN, 55057

Julián Monge-Nájera, Laboratorio de Ecología Urbana, UNED, San José, Costa Rica

Programa de Patriarcado, Laboratorio de Ecología Urbana, UNED, 2050 San José, Costa Rica, jmonge@uned.ac.cr 

 

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Additional Files

Published

2016-06-10

How to Cite

Izaguirre, E., & Monge-Nájera, J. (2016). Perceptions of college students in Costa Rica about prostitution. UNED Research Journal, 8(1), 55–59. https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v8i1.1223

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