Male Escorts' Construction of the Boyfriend Experience: How Escorts Please Their Clients

ABSTRACT

The current study examines the ways that male escorts provide highly desired services for male clients. Building on the “girlfriend experience” identified in the female prostitution literature, the authors discuss the corollary experience of the “boyfriend experience” and identify and examine the components of the boyfriend experience that are central to the social construction of the experience. Data is drawn from 627 online reviews of male escorts written between 2015 and 2016. Following data collection, analytic induction, using a 3-step coding process, is used to identify themes. The authors argue that the boyfriend experience is constructed out of perceptions of companionship, authenticity, and passion in both social and sexual interactions. Reviews emphasize the importance of intimacy, socialization, and emotional connections experienced between customer/escort and show that such are commonly more important and valued than sexual gratification.

KEYWORDS:

• Qualitative studies
• adult sexuality
• gay men
• pleasure

Notes

¹ The checklist of items reported about each escort includes five categories of information in addition to a photograph. Under the heading of General is listed the escort's name, city, telephone number, email address, webpage address, sexual orientation and whether the escort does in-calls or outcalls. Under the heading of Physical are entries for the reviewer to note the escort's build, height, weight, cock length and circumcision status, age (in categories of 10s), ethnicity, hair color, eye color, whether the escort smokes or drinks, whether the escort has facial hair, body hair, tattoos and piercings. Under the category heading of Activities is listed whether the escort will travel with a client, performs massage or other services, and whether the escort kisses, engages in frottage and whether they will perform active, passive or both roles in oral sex and anal sex. The fourth category heading is Rates and lists the escort's per session financial rate, and rates for the first and subsequent hours of service. Finally, the category of Session a reviewer may enter information on where (city) they were with the escort, the date of the encounter, the rate paid to the escort, how long the session was, whether the reviewer would recommend the escort to others, whether the client would hire the escort again, whether the escort's posted description is accurate, whether the escort lived up the client's expectations, and where the client found the escort (online, if so where, or where offline).