# Did Most Prostitutes & Female Porn Stars Get Molested As Children? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 4, 2004, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468 "2004-05-04T15:11:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/81 "2010-09-17T16:01:15Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > A sociologist whose studies indicate that the sex trade has changed dramatically in recent years just wrote an op ed for the [Washington Post](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/10/AR2010091002670.html?hpid=opinionsbox1). > > > [@](#): > > > > [Myth]3. Most prostitutes are addicted to drugs or were abused as children. > > > > This was once the case, as a host of research on prostitution long ago confirmed. But the population of women choosing sex work has changed dramatically over the past decade. High-end prostitutes of the sort Eliot Spitzer frequented account for a greater share of the sex business than they once did. And as Barnard College’s Elizabeth Bernstein has shown, sex workers today tend to make a conscious decision to enter the trade – not as a reaction to suffering but to earn some quick cash. Among these women, Bernstein’s research suggests, prostitution is viewed as a part-time job, one that grants autonomy and flexibility. > > > > These women have little in common with the shrinking number of sex workers who still work on the streets. In a 2001 study of British prostitutes, Stephanie Church of Glasgow University found that those working outdoors “were younger, involved in prostitution at an earlier age, reported more illegal drug use, and experienced significantly more violence from their clients than those working indoors.” I’ve encountered a few of these studies. They are echoes of our increasingly liberal (to use the word in its extreme) society and the valid feminist viewpoint that a woman owns her body and should be able to chose what she does with it. The problem with it is that a prostitute enters dangerous emotional and physical territory in the practice of her vocation. Even well-screened clients can be unpredictable under the influence of desire and the sense of freedom that he’s paid for what he wants. Remember that high class patron, Patrick Bates? Remember that violence knows no economic boundaries. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2010, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/82 "2010-09-18T08:10:01Z")
> [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > The problem with it is that a prostitute enters dangerous emotional and physical territory in the practice of her vocation. Even well-screened clients can be unpredictable under the influence of desire and the sense of freedom that he’s paid for what he wants. > > Remember that high class patron, Patrick Bates? Remember that violence knows no economic boundaries. Erm, is there anybody (here or elsewhere) arguing that sex work doesn’t carry risks? A key part of the “liberal” and “feminist” arguments is that there are _more_ risks when it’s driven underground through criminalisation policies. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2010, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/83 "2010-09-18T15:01:43Z")
Well, stuff like this: > [@Rigamarole](#): > > I highly doubt it. It’s great money. Most are just girls who realized that they could charge an hourly rate higher than that of a lawyer who busted her ass for 7+ years of law school and went hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, and all they have to do is lie there. (yeah of course there are a lot of risks/dangers associated with it and they’re only a desirable commodity for a limited period of their lives, but they still earn insane amounts of money) makes me think that some people don’t see it that way, for the “high class” hooker. They just see it as a great easy way to make money. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2010, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/84 "2010-09-19T06:15:34Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Well, stuff like this: > > > [@Rigamarole](#): > > > > yeah of course there are a lot of risks/dangers associated with it Do people not even read things they quote anymore? ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2010, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/85 "2010-09-19T14:37:26Z")
Details, baby, details. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2010, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/86 "2010-09-19T22:07:14Z")
Thank you for posting this, Eustacia. I know how hard it was to post that in a public forum. Your example of strength and courage in how you survived are a neverending source of great inspiration for me. > [@Eustacia](#): > > I don’t know about the stats, but I do know a bit about what makes incest survivors tick. I was molested by my stepfather from the ages of 10 to 12. (He stopped only when he literally dropped dead in front of me as he was about to do it again.) I spent many, many, many years in therapy and learned a lot about my life response as well as the opposite extreme. The underlying issue is that the abuser totally destroys your boundaries. The younger you are, the more effect it can have if you didn’t have a chance to form proper boundaries. > > There’s a sort of set up process that goes on before the actual abuse starts. The abuser tears the child down and makes her feel worthless. Then when he shows her this unwanted attention, she begins to think it’s a good thing because it makes her feel loved and like someone wants her. It’s a very sick mind game to play with a child because you’re left with this feeling that you wanted it somehow, even though you certainly didn’t. You just wanted love from this person but it gets all mixed up with this physical stuff you don’t understand but you know you don’t like. > > Lots of girls go one of two ways with this (with lots of in-betweens): They can become sex addicts or they can shut themselves off entirely. Before my stepdad died I constantly thought about running away. I even thought that being a prostitute wouldn’t be any worse than living with him. I imagine that’s part of it for some girls who take that route. They might also be looking for that feeling of being wanted and loved, and sex is one way they were taught to find that before. I’m not saying these are even conscious choices. Most of the time, they probably aren’t. Part of it also is about not believing you have any autonomy over your own body. > > Me, I went the other way. I refuse to let anyone have control over me and I always kept myself very tightly reined in and in control of myself. Lots of defenses built in there… ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2010, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/87 "2010-09-20T00:24:56Z")
> [@Tethered\_Kite](#): > > Remember that high class patron, Patrick Bates? Remember that violence knows no economic boundaries. I think you mean Patrick Bateman, and I must point out that using a fictional character as an example is, well, kind of silly. ---
**Author:** ![Redpill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/58956e/32.png) [@Redpill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Redpill)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2010, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/88 "2010-09-20T06:54:11Z")
Did Most Prostitutes & Female Porn Stars Get Molested As Children? You can only reasonably answer this question if you: a) Define molestation. b) Ask both parties involved. c) They both answer your question. d) They both tell the truth. ---
**Author:** ![AmericanP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d26b3c/32.png) [@AmericanP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmericanP)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/89 "2011-06-15T19:09:18Z")
My armchair theory on this (that is, why there is a correlation between sexual abuse and women going into porn, stripping etc) is that in some people when they are sexually abused they their brain goes through a Stockholm Syndrome like process. In other words, instead of doing what you would instinctively expect them to do, which would be to close up and not want to do anything sexual again, they in fact do the opposite which is become hypersexual. Sometimes during times of abuse the brain does funny things that seem to go against logic. The victim becomes endeared to the abuse or abuser. Another aspect of it is probably a self hate component. Although most of these women will deny this, it would stand to reason that many of the think the abuse is somehow their fault or because they are not “worthy” as a person – therefore as an act of self destruction they go out and sleep with lots of people and engage in other dangerous activities. I don’t think its coincidental that many of these women also consume large amounts of drugs and alcohol. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/90 "2011-06-15T20:07:14Z")
braaaaains … braaaaains … ---
**Author:** ![tim-n-va](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim-n-va/32/3001_2.png) [@tim-n-va](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim-n-va)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/91 "2011-06-15T20:12:11Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Eve: I want an apple. > Adam: Go get it then. > Eve: I’ll suck your dick if you get me an apple. > And prostitution was born. So prostitution is the second oldest profession with “apple fetcher” being the oldest. ---
**Author:** ![AmericanP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d26b3c/32.png) [@AmericanP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmericanP)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/92 "2011-06-15T20:44:45Z")
> [@tim-n-va](#): > > So prostitution is the second oldest profession with “apple fetcher” being the oldest. Well technically prostitution still wins if she sucked his dick first… ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/93 "2011-06-15T21:32:53Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > braaaaains > … > braaaaains > … If you look back, this is the second necro - this thread was started in 2004. ---
**Author:** ![AmericanP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d26b3c/32.png) [@AmericanP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmericanP)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/94 "2011-06-16T02:17:10Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > If you look back, this is the second necro - this thread was started in 2004. Indeed, it’s an interesting topic. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2011, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/95 "2011-06-16T02:49:29Z")
Reminds me of the LazyBoy rant “Underwear Goes Inside the Pants”. I heard it on car radio in New Zealand and was laughing so hard I almost drove off the road. > [@](#): > > The schools now… It is all about > self-esteem in the schools now. > Build the kids’ self-esteem, > make them feel good about themselves. > If everybody grows up with high self-esteem, who is going to dance in our strip clubs? > What’s going to happen to our porno industry? > These women don’t just grown on trees. > It takes lots of drunk dads missing dance recitals before you decide to blow a goat on the internet for fifty bucks. > And if that disappears, where does that leave me on a Friday night with my new high speed connection? ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2011, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/96 "2011-06-18T17:43:24Z")
> [@AmericanP](#): > > My armchair theory on this (that is, why there is a correlation between sexual abuse and women going into porn, stripping etc) is that in some people when they are sexually abused they their brain goes through a Stockholm Syndrome like process. > > In other words, instead of doing what you would instinctively expect them to do, which would be to close up and not want to do anything sexual again, they in fact do the opposite which is become hypersexual. Sometimes during times of abuse the brain does funny things that seem to go against logic. The victim becomes endeared to the abuse or abuser. > > Another aspect of it is probably a self hate component. Although most of these women will deny this, it would stand to reason that many of the think the abuse is somehow their fault or because they are not “worthy” as a person – therefore as an act of self destruction they go out and sleep with lots of people and engage in other dangerous activities. I don’t think its coincidental that many of these women also consume large amounts of drugs and alcohol. Your theory is exactly the same as mine, which I arrived at based on my experience. Down to citing the Stockholm syndrome. I realized I finally had mastery over my own personal autonomy the day I decided to quit stockholming all such creeps who would prey on me. ---
**Author:** ![survivornz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@survivornz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/survivornz)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2013, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468/97 "2013-06-29T11:31:42Z")
Hi, Yes, in answer to your question. It is true that the expectation would be to avoid sexual contact, and some do. But, there are many that feel their bodies are not their own and any type of sexual advances that are put upon them, they just ‘don’t fight’ as they’ve been taught that their body and sexual needs are not for their purpose but for the person who is making the sexual advances, this is what the abuse has taught them. The younger they were when it started, the worse the belief system is. I was four, I told my mother and she replied ‘Don’t tell fibs.’ So, I was betrayed twice. Every parlour that I ever worked in, all the girls there were survivors. Although, I wouldn’t say that moving into prostitution is a sign of ‘surviving,’ it simply means we didn’t off ourselves, not that most of us didn’t try in some way. People who have experience child sexual abuse go one of two ways, they either do what you mentioned and live a life of solitude and shut themselves away; or, they give up and just do what they’re told by the ‘john’. I was very promiscuous as a young teen. When I was fifteen I was asked to topless dance and it progressed from there. I basically thought that if I’m going to just give it up to anyone that makes advances, I might as well get paid for it. And that’s how most of us think. Luckily, having a son is what snapped me out of the lifestyle and got me on the straight and narrow, I haven’t looked back. Ironically, I never took drugs or drank. I was so far gone, I was already numb! I hope this offers some insight to your question. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-most-prostitutes-female-porn-stars-get-molested-as-children/243468.md?page=4)