New research published in Journal of Sex Research It suggests that the specific words used to describe people in the commercial sex industry shape how the public views them. The findings provide evidence that terms such as ‘sex worker’ and ‘escort’ carry less stigma and are viewed more positively than terms such as ‘prostitute’ and ‘prostitute’. This suggests that changing the language used in the media and legal settings may help reduce bias against these professionals.
Researchers conducted this study to better understand the powerful role language plays in shaping social prejudice. “Truth is, this study is very personal to me. I have spent years volunteering with nonprofit organizations aimed at providing support and care to sex workers (thank you Cupcake Girls),” said Sarah Lindley, chief statistician at the University of Michigan Medical School. “I learned a lot about the industry and experiences of sex workers. As a researcher, given the importance of terminology, I was surprised by the lack of literature on people’s reactions to the various terms used for sex workers.”
People who exchange sexual services for money or goods face strong social prejudice, which tends to normalize violence and discrimination against them. In recent years, advocates have pushed for the adoption of the term “sex worker” to emphasize the labor aspects of the profession. Pointing out that these language choices have far-reaching implications, Lindley explained, “Terminology in general, and especially when it comes to sex workers, has important connotations, and a single word can change the way people think about people in the industry.”
Previous research investigated this topic by having the same participants rate multiple terms simultaneously. This method can lead to a psychological effect known as anchoring bias. This occurs when a person’s response to one question significantly influences their response to the next question. To avoid this, the researchers designed a new experiment in which each person evaluated only one term.
To conduct the study, scientists recruited an initial group of 401 participants from the United States through an online research platform. After excluding those who failed the attention check, the final sample included 386 people who were paid $3 for their time. This nationally representative group had an average age of approximately 42 years and included 199 women.
The researchers randomly assigned each participant to read the questionnaire using one of four specific terms. These terms were sex worker, escort, prostitute, or prostitute. Participants then answered a series of questions that measured their perceptions of the demographics of people associated with their assigned labels.
They estimated these professionals’ racial composition, biological sex, sexual identity, and involvement in human trafficking using a sliding scale from zero to 100 percent. To create a baseline for comparison, participants also estimated the demographic breakdown of the broader U.S. population. The scientists then measured the content of the stereotypes by asking participants to rate how well a particular adjective described the group to which it was assigned.
Participants rated words such as dirty, lewd, ambitious, and competent using a five-point scale ranging from “not at all” to “very much.” Finally, the survey asked participants to rate on a scale of 0 to 100 how harmful they thought their assigned group was to society. Higher scores on this scale indicate a belief that the occupation causes greater social harm.
This data reveals some notable patterns in how the public imagines the demographics of people working in the sex industry. Participants estimated that black people were overrepresented in the sex work industry compared to the general population. Specifically, it estimates that approximately 29 percent of the general population is black, but 33 to 37 percent of people in the sex industry are black.
Additionally, participants perceived fewer men and heterosexuals participating in the sex industry compared to the broader national average. The researchers noted that these estimates may reflect underlying societal biases and stereotypes about minority groups and gender norms. For example, people may rely on negative portrayals in the media when inferring the demographic composition of a stigmatized occupation.
When looking at descriptive adjectives, the researchers found that participants viewed the terms “sex worker” and “escort” similarly. They also viewed the terms “prostitute” and “prostitute” similarly, but much more negatively. For example, words such as “poorly educated,” “dishonest,” “ugly,” and “victim” were strongly associated with “prostitute” and “prostitute.”
In contrast, “sex workers” and “escorts” were more often associated with economic success and less likely to be seen as victims. Despite attempts to focus on the professional aspects of the industry, sexual descriptions dominated the results in all four experimental groups. The two most common adjectives chosen for all four terms were “orgy” and “sexual perversion.”
Using statistical models, scientists found that the term “sex worker” was perceived more positively than “prostitute” or “prostitute.” This is true even after taking into account participants’ age, gender, and political orientation. This analysis also suggests that racial perceptions may influence these negative views.
“We looked at the interaction of the perceived proportion of the black population within each term and found that people were less likely to view the term hooker (compared to sex worker) positively if they believed there was a higher proportion of ‘hookers’ who were black,” Lindley said. “This suggests that there is an unexplored relationship between race and terminology that we have not yet explored.” This provides evidence that racial bias may serve as an underlying factor explaining why certain terms carry more severe stigma.
Although the findings of this study provide useful insights into public bias, there may be some misconceptions and limitations that should be considered. “Our analysis is primarily exploratory, descriptive, and aimed at providing evidence for future testable hypotheses, especially given the lack of quantitative research in this area,” Lindley explained. Because this study relied on a predefined set of adjectives for participants to rate, certain nuances of how people naturally describe these groups may have been missed.
Future research should continue to examine the specific types of bias directed against people in the sex work industry, such as the current study by Lindley’s co-author Kayla Byrd at the University of Wyoming’s Social Cognitive Law Institute.
“We are currently collecting responses from a mock jury study to examine the impact of terminology on sex workers in the U.S. legal system,” Lindley said. “We will continue to incorporate aspects of race and ethnicity along with the terminology to further explore the potential interactions described above.” Ultimately, Lindley said, “The most important aspect of this study is that it has real-world implications for people in the sex industry, and also provides us with another reason to be intentional about the language we use.”
The study, “What’s in a Name? Public Perceptions of Sex Worker Professionals Are Differently Affected by Terminology,” was authored by Sarah M. Lindley, Kayla A. Byrd, Scott Frenn, Olivia N. Grela, Jaylan M. Aliyev, and Amanda Anzovino.
