What’s technology got to do with it? Exploring the impact of mobile phones on female sex workers’ lives and livelihood in India

Abstract

Technology has brought about substantial changes to the landscape of sex work globally. However, few studies have captured the holistic impact of mobile phones on the lives of female sex workers (FSWs) in India. In this exploratory study, 67 FSWs and 18 staff and leaders from local non-governmental organizations participated in in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Respondents strongly emphasized the innumerable ways in which mobile phones had changed the sex work environment in terms of client solicitation and managing long-term relationships with clients. Results revealed a complex picture of significant risks as well as gains resulting from the use of mobile phones. Participant narratives also highlighted the challenges posed by technology in terms of invasion of privacy, incidents of blackmail, and violence. FSWs’ personal agency was evidenced in innovative strategies to connect to social networks, stay safe, and maintain privacy. Results point to the need to adopt a nuanced stance regarding understanding the role of mobile phone technology in FSWs’ lives. There is an urgent need to develop on-going supportive phone-based networks in addition to examining the broader implications for the development of technology-based interventions for vulnerable populations.

Keywords:

• Sex work
• mobile phone technology
• India
• prostitution
• FSWs
• technology-based interventions

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all the participants for generously sharing their insights with us. We also thank the staff and leadership at Navjeevan, Mumbai; Aneka, Bengaluru; and the Karnataka Sex Workers? Union and all the participant NGO personnel for their participation, commitment and support to the study. We would also like to thank Ms. Joanna Barberii and Ms. Natalie Brooks-Wilson for their help with the paper. We thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable feedback.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Fulbright-Nehru Award for Academic & Professional Excellence to the first author.

Notes on contributors

Subadra Panchanadeswaran

Subadra Panchanadeswaran is an Associate Professor at Adelphi University School of Social Work. Her research interests include gender-based violence, HIV/AIDS and substance use disorders and related issues among female sex workers in India, South Asian immigrant women, and substance using populations in the U.S.

Ardra Manasi Unnithan

Ardra Manasi Unnithan is currently a Consultant with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), Population Division where she works in the area of global migration policy. She holds a Master of Arts in International Affairs from The New School, NYC and a Master of Arts in Development Studies from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, India.

Shubha Chacko

Shubha Chacko is the Executive Director of Solidarity Foundation, an organisation that supports grassroots initiatives of sex workers and sexual minorities (LGBT). She has a Master?s degree in Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai and over thirty years of experience on human rights and social justice issues.

Michael Brazda

Michael Brazda is a PhD candidate in the Doctoral Program in Gerontology, University of Maryland Baltimore and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. MA in Applied Sociology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His research interests include technology, aging, gender and sexuality. Currently working as an adjunct instructor in Gerontology and Sociology.

Santushi Kuruppu

Santushi Kuruppu is an experienced independent consultant on issues around board development, governance, and project management in the not-for-profit sector. She has served as the Board Chair of Sakhi for South Asian Women in New York City and consults with NGOs both in India and the U.S.