Exploring prostituted women's experiences of a South African exit intervention: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

Heiberg, Tessa

Exploring prostituted women's experiences of a South African exit intervention: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

Thesis

2011-10

Publisher

University of Cape Town

Department

Department of Psychology

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Series

Knowledge Co-op project #6. Exit strategies for prostituted women

Abstract

Prostitution is the oldest form of oppression. Many prostituted women in South Africa wish to exit sex work, but are unable to because they have no other means of earning money. There is a dearth of research available on assisting prostituted women to exit sex work in South Africa. This study explored the effectiveness of a Cape Town-based NGO's - Embrace Dignity - exit intervention for prostituted women. Using semi-structured interviews it investigated the experiences of eight prostituted women in Cape Town. The research goal was to be able to inform improvements to the intervention for exit. An interpretative phenomenological approach was used to analyse interviews of women's experiences of the intervention. Findings revealed that attempting to exit prostitution in South Africa is an incredibly difficult and deeply complex process. An exploration of women's experiences of Embrace Dignity suggested that whilst it provides emotional and social support to prostituted women, it does not address their physical needs, most importantly that of employment. This study reveals that although emotional support plays a crucial role in assisting prostituted women to exit, it is secondary to the urgent physical support needed to satisfy the basic survival needs of prostituted women living in extreme poverty in South Africa.