Sex Work in a Digital Era

In recent years, scholars have begun to investigate the role of digital technologies, namely the Internet, in facilitating growth in sexual commerce. Recent studies investigate the ways the Internet shapes the experiences of sex workers and how sex workers use the Internet to maximize profits and reduce risk exposure. Overall, scholars strategically frame sex work in a digital era in terms of affordances. In doing so, they can note the positive changes in the work experiences of these workers. However, I argue that this literature is altogether too optimistic, and in focusing primarily on the affordances of Internet‐based sex work, these scholars neglect the new dangers that emerge online. In addition, by focusing only on the online practices of escorts, these scholars paint a homogenized portrait of digital sex work and neglect the diversity of labor performed by sex workers. This literature also neglects the diversity among sex workers themselves (e.g., race, ethnicity, class, gender, age, and ability). In order to address these limitations, I make nine specific suggestions for future lines of inquiry.     

Impulsivity as a Risk Factor for HIV Transmission in Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Delay Discounting Approach

Delay discounting (DD) is a measure of impulsivity that describes the subjective decline in value of a consequence as the delay to that consequence increases. We sought to assess whether the results of a monetary DD task would be predictive of sexual risk-taking in a group of Internet-using men who have sex with men (MSM). 1402 participants completed an online survey that included questions about the participant’s demographics, sexual history and behavior, drug use, sexual compulsivity, and a monetary DD task. High DD was associated with increased odds of reporting >2 UAI partners in the past 12 months [aOR = 1.5 (1.1–2.1)]. Future studies should examine the utility of DD as a predictor of risky sexual behavior, as well as explore the possibility of HIV prevention interventions targeting DD.     

How to conduct a Narrative Policy Framework study

The Narrative Policy Framework has a growing number of researchers seeking to apply the framework in policy process scholarship. This article is intended to assist those interested in conducting an NPF study that is ‘clear enough to be wrong’ (Sabatier, 2000). While graduate programs offer critical methodological training, this article focuses on the specific application of the NPF to research inquiries about the role of policy narratives in the policy process. We approach our discussion by examining various decisions in the research process and include a detailed discussion of specifying the model and obtaining narrative data. We also point out areas for further investigation.     

Predicting Condom Use Outcomes via the Information Motivation Behavioral Skills Model: An Analysis of Young Black Men

Objectives: This study examines the relationships between information motivation behavioral skills model constructs and their associations with consistent condom use and condom use problems among young Black men. Methods: The authors use baseline data collected from 702 participants in a randomized controlled trial. Analyses involved path modeling and bootstrapped standard errors to estimate associations. Results: Motivation had the largest association with consistent condom use, whereas condom application skills had the largest association with condom use problems. Conclusion: Motivation is the most important predictor of consistent condom use, whereas condom application skills are the most important predictor of condom use problems.     

Children of prisoners: exploring the impact of families' reappraisal of the role and status of the imprisoned parent on children's coping strategies

Qualitative data from a larger study on the impact of parental imprisonment in four countries found that children of prisoners face fundamentally similar psychological and social challenges. The ways that children cope, however, are influenced by the interpretative frame adopted by the adults around them, and by how issues of parental imprisonment are talked about in their families. This article argues that families have to reappraise their view of the imprisoned parent and then decide on their policy for how to deal with this publicly. Their approach may be based on openness and honesty or may emphasise privacy and secrecy, or a combination of these. Children are likely to be influenced by their parents'/carers' views, although these may cause conflict for them. Where parents/carers retain a positive view of the imprisoned parent, children are likely to benefit; where parents/carers feel issues of shame and stigma acutely, this is likely to be transmitted to their children. This is important for social workers and practitioners involved in supporting prisoners' families and for parenting programmes.     

Pupil Mobility: Using Students' Voices to Explore their Experiences of Changing Schools

This article explores the ways in which students' voices can be used to analyse the process of moving schools, at a time outside of those that young people normally change schools. The paper is based on a study in a secondary school and uses qualitative data collected by researchers and student co‐researchers. Two areas were raised by students as important about being at a new school: the perceived challenges and their perceptions of learning in a new environment. It is argued that to respond to issues that arise due to mobility, an engagement with students' views is necessary. Furthermore, this can facilitate policy‐makers, school leaders and educators in providing more effective support for those young people.     

The use of client surrogates in determining the reliability of a standardized assessment instrument in multiple, diverse settings

Since its introduction in 1980, the widely-used Addiction Severity Index has been subjected to extensive validity and reliability studies. Reliability procedures have commonly entailed test–retest and multiple judge video reviews, all within controlled environments. The following study uses a method that differs substantially from conventional reliability assessment by employing trained, professional actors as client surrogates to examine the reliability of the instrument when administered in the field, in naturalistic, diverse agency settings. This article details this method, addressing the question, to what extent did this method produce consistent stimuli to enable the measurement of reliability?