Gender Identity and Sexual Experience: An Intersectional Analysis of Experienced Stigma Among U.S. Sex Workers

Abstract

Sex work is a stigmatized occupation, as sex workers challenge societal and moral norms. Research indicates that there are four domains in which sex work stigma (SWS) manifests: healthcare, law enforcement, community-at-large, and family. Based on intersectional theory, we conceptualized SWS as shaped by and exacerbated in response to overlapping marginalized identities. Thus, this research explored variations in experienced SWS according to gender identity and sexual experience. A total of 471 U.S. sex workers completed the four-factor Sex Work Experienced Stigma Scale and a demographics questionnaire assessing gender identity and sexual experience. Results revealed that although gender identity did not have a significant effect on experienced SWS, those with any amount of same-gender experience reported greater experienced SWS than did those with exclusively other-gender experience. A significant interaction effect was also found between gender identity and sexual experience in the law enforcement domain, such that men with same-gender experience reported greater stigma than did women with same-gender experience. These findings indicate that across domains, experiences of SWS are relatively stable between women and men but vary according to sexual experience. Additionally, multiple stigmatized identities resulted in heightened experiences of SWS in the law enforcement domain, suggesting that law enforcement officers may treat sex workers differently based on intersectional identities.