St. Catherine University SOPHIA Master of Social Work Clinical Research Papers School of Social Work 5-2015 The Commonalities and Shared Experiences of Female Prostitutes Who Were Sexually Exploited as Children: The Perspectives of Clinical Social Workers Heather Wilmes St. Catherine University Follow this and additional works at: https://sophia.stkate.edu/msw_papers Part of the Social Work Commons Recommended Citation Wilmes, Heather. (2015). The Commonalities and Shared Experiences of Female Prostitutes Who Were Sexually Exploited as Children: The Perspectives of Clinical Social Workers. Retrieved from Sophia, the St. Catherine University repository website: https://sophia.stkate.edu/msw_papers/545 This Clinical research paper is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Social Work at SOPHIA. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master of Social Work Clinical Research Papers by an authorized administrator of SOPHIA. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Commonalities and Shared Experiences of Female Prostitutes Who Were Sexually Exploited as Children: The Perspectives of Clinical Social Workers by Heather Wilmes MSW Clinical Research Paper Presented to the Faculty of the School of Social Work St. Catherine University and the University of St. Thomas St. Paul, Minnesota In Partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Social Work Committee Members: Rosella Collins-Puoch, Ed. D., MSW, LICSW (Chair) George V. Baboila, MSW, LICSW Nikki Knudson-Dalal, MA, LAMFT, LADC The Clinical Research Project is a graduation requirement for MSW students at St. Catherine University/University of St. Thomas School of Social Work in St. Paul, Minnesota and is conducted within a nine-month time frame to demonstrate facility with basic social research methods. Students must independently conceptualize a research problem, formulate a research design that is approved by a research committee and the university Institutional Review Board, implement the project, and publicly present the findings of the study. This project is neither a Master’s thesis nor a dissertation. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Rosella Collins-Puoch for her feedback and support throughout this process. Thank you, Lisa Richardson, for your continued support. Thank you to my Committee members. Thank you to my classmates for offering a shoulder to lean on. Thank you to my son for refusing to give up on me. Thank you, Graham, for helping me through the darkest hours. Thank you Mom and Dad for keeping me motivated. Thank you to the family and friends that helped me throughout this process, and for keeping me motivated, and for understanding why I was absent from activities. 4 ABSTRACT Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LICSW) provide services to vulnerable populations. As the number of sexually exploited women in Minnesota and the United States grows, so does the number of women needing services from social workers. It is important that LICSWs understand the population of women who have engaged in prostitution that were victims of sexual exploitation as children. If LICSWs are knowledgeable about the commonalities and shared experiences of the women they serve, they may be able to identify common risk factors and provide appropriate services. This research study sought to identify the commonalities and shared experiences of female prostitutes that were sexually exploited as children. The major themes that emerged from this data were: 1) females who engage in prostitution are often victims of child sexual exploitation; 2) common risk factors exist; 3) family dysfunction leads to survival sex; 4) poor self-esteem; 5) barriers to receiving service exist; 6) technology has increased the invisibility of victims; 7) the definition of sexual exploitation is too broad and hard to understand; 8) mentors are important, and 9) group therapy can be effective in helping victims to heal. Implications for social worker practice and future research are discussed. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................... 1 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................ 4 Prevalence of Child Sexual Exploitation in the United States .............................................. 4 Prevalence of Sexual Exploitation in Minnesota .................................................................... 5 An Increase in the Demand for Child Pornography .............................................................. 6 Various Forms Child Sexual Exploitation .............................................................................. 6 Sexual Abuse of a Child ..................................................................................................... 6 Child Sex Tourism and Child Sex Trafficking ................................................................... 7 Survival Sex ........................................................................................................................ 8 Child Pornography and Child Sexual Exploitation on the Internet .................................... 8 Risk Factors that Increase a Female Child’s Vulnerability to Sexual Exploitation ........... 9 Missing and Runaway Children .......................................................................................... 9 Gender ............................................................................................................................... 10 Children Living in Poverty ............................................................................................... 11 Children with Substance Abuse Disorder ......................................................................... 11 Children in Foster Care ..................................................................................................... 13 Children Who Identify as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, or Questioning ............ 14 Sexually Exploited Female Children Who Engage in Prostitution as Adults .................... 15 Consequences of Engaging In Prostitution as Adults .......................................................... 17 Summary .................................................................................................................................. 17 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK .............................................................................................. 19 METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................................... 21 Research Design....................................................................................................................... 21 Sample ...................................................................................................................................... 21 Data Collection ........................................................................................................................ 22 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 22 Protection of Human Participants ......................................................................................... 23 FINDINGS ................................................................................................................................... 24 Sample ...................................................................................................................................... 24 Themes...................................................................................................................................... 24 Females who engage in prostitution are often victims of child sexual exploitation. ........ 25 Common risk factors exist ................................................................................................ 26 Family dysfunction leads to survival sex .......................................................................... 27 Poor self-esteem ................................................................................................................ 28 Barriers to receiving services exist ................................................................................... 29 i Technology has increased invisibility of victims.............................................................. 29 The definition of sexual is too broad and hard to understand .......... Error! Bookmark not defined. 31 Mentors are important ....................................................................................................... 32 Group therapy can be effective in helping victims to heal ............................................... 33 DISCUSSION .............................................................................................................................. 34 Sample ...................................................................................................................................... 34 Themes...................................................................................................................................... 34 Researcher Reactions .............................................................................................................. 38 Limitations and recommendations for future research ....................................................... 38 Implications for social work practice ...................................................................................