Description
The commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) is a multibillion-dollar industry in the United States, and includes: pornography, physical abuse, and child trafficking. Recent studies show that pimps/traffickers control the majority of CSEC victims in the U.S., and that there are over 240,000 CSEC victims every year, some who are younger than 12 years old. Researchers have identified risk and protective factors for CSEC; however, most of the studies describe these factors without using a theoretical framework. The present study examines the nature of the pimping relationship between sex traffickers and victims through the lens of attachment theory. A sample of fifteen stakeholders (e.g., law enforcement officers, service providers, advocates) who had work experience with CSEC were interviewed through a semi-structured interview format. Participants were stakeholders including law enforcement officers, service providers, advocates, educators, and survivors who have direct experience in working with CSEC victims. The results suggest that attachment theory may be useful in describing the pimping relationship between sex traffickers and victims. The results support and expand on previous research, which reports that CSEC victims are often victims of sexual abuse and have dysfunctional homes where they did not develop a secure attachment style or healthy bonding toward their parents. Supporting attachment theory, the stakeholders describe victims who have a history of abuse and who lack positive attachment figures, and who may have insecure attachment styles that increase their risk for CSEC. Specifically, CSEC victims may have preoccupied or dismissing insecure attachment styles that can lead to low self-esteem, trust and dependency issues, and isolation, that can make them vulnerable to the entrapment strategies of traffickers. Responses from stakeholders in the present study also support the existence of trauma bonding between CSEC victims and pimps. The results have implications for supporting the creation of healthy bonding to positive attachment figures as an important goal of both prevention and intervention programs for CSEC.
