Survey Reveals Extent of Teen Prostitution

Aug. 9, 2006 — -- About 650,000 American teenagers have exchanged sex for money or drugs, and boys were more likely to have prostituted themselves than girls, according to the only survey ever committed to the subject.

According to the survey, published Wednesday in the Journal of Sexually Transmitted Infections, close to 4 percent of more than 13,000 U.S. teens in grades seven through 12 reported having ever exchanged sex for drugs or money.

While it's long been known that teens who are homeless or drug abusers are at an increased risk of prostituting themselves, it has not been known just how many teens in the general population behave similarly.

The survey found that boys were far more likely than girls to have participated in prostitution.

"Although 3.5 percent is a small percentage, it translates into a sizable number of youths, about 650,000," said lead researcher Jessica Edwards, at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in Chapel Hill, N.C. "And given that sex exchange is associated with so many risk behaviors, it's a very important issue to study."

Those dangers include sexually transmitted infections and drug abuse. About 15 percent of boys and 20 percent of girls who prostituted themselves reported that they had had a sexually transmitted infection, compared with 2 percent of boys and 4 percent of girls in the group who had never exchanged sex for money or drugs.

Also, far more of those who exchanged sex reported using drugs, especially inhalants and injection drugs.

However, at the time of the survey, the average number of times that teens reported exchanging sex for money or drugs was just one. Edwards said that that probably indicates the teens aren't using prostitution to support themselves but rather to get something they want but don't really need.

In the future, Edwards said the nature of the encounters needs to be investigated.

"For example, where do these sex exchanges occur?" the report states. "Who are the exchange partners? What precipitates the exchange?"

To help garner honest responses from teens, the data was collected from teens at their homes using a laptop computer. The data was collected in 1995 and 1996, and was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.