"Masculinity and Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children: Views from Male Children Survivors and Practitioners"

The presentation aims to analyse the relationship between the idea of masculinity and Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) in male children. In order to do so, we conducted a qualitative research. In the first... [ view full abstract ]

The presentation aims to analyse the relationship between the idea of masculinity and Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) in male children. In order to do so, we conducted a qualitative research. In the first stage, we used group interviews with CSEC practitioners who work in the centre-north zone of Chile (5). In the second stage, we conducted in-depth interviews with boys intervened by these practitioners (5).

The following categories emerged through discourse analysis:

a) Practitioners’ discursive categories were: i) the fragility of the children–men; ii) views about the exploited children; iii) the sacrificial exploited children; iv) the masculine power of boys.

b) Boys’ discursive categories were: i) about family: neither close nor apart; ii) about the changes of exploited children; iii) about seduction; iv) the chameleon-ism.

We applied a socio-cultural framework to analyse the definitions about masculinity and the self-definitions of male children and youth victims of CSEC. In addition, the categories made by practitioners and male children victims of CSEC were contrasted in order to understand the cultural marks of the traditional position of men in the process of social intervention for male children victims of CSEC.