Investigating the relationship of childhood traumas and sexual guilt with sexual addiction in Iranian prostitutes

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, Sadjad University, Mashhad, Iran

2 Department of Psychology, Shandiz Institute of Higher Education, Mashhad, Iran

10.34172/ahj.2024.1450

Abstract

Background: Prostitution is a social phenomenon, and its underlying factors require more scholarly attention. This study aimed to 
investigate the relationship of childhood traumas and sexual guilt with sexual addiction in Iranian prostitutes. 
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on prostitutes who visited a health promotion center in Khorasan Razavi 
province, Iran in 2020. A total of 100 women agreed to participate in the study. Data collection tools included the Sexual Addiction 
Screening Test (SAST), Mosher Sex-Guilt Scale, and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Data were analyzed using Pearson’s 
correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis.
Findings: The age of the participants ranged from 23 to 42, with a mean age of 33.54±8.9 years. About 40% of the participants 
were divorced, 13% were married, 27% were single, and 10% were widows. The findings indicated that 84% of the prostitutes 
met the criteria for sexual addiction according to SAST. Emotional abuse (r=0.41, P<0.001), physical abuse (r=0.32, P<0.001), 
sexual abuse (r=0.33, P<0.001), emotional neglect (r=0.52, P<0.001), and physical neglect (r=0.37, P<0.001) had a positive 
and significant relationship with sexual addiction in prostitutes. There was no correlation between sexual guilt and sexual addiction 
(r=0.13, P=0.09). Furthermore, the linear regression results showed that emotional neglect was the only variable positively 
associated with sexual addiction (β=0.5, P<0.001).
Conclusion: The findings of this study suggested that childhood traumas can predict sexual addiction in female prostitutes.

Highlights

Maryam ghazaei: (Google Scholar) (PubMed)

Nayereh Rafeei: (Google Scholar) (PubMed)

Keywords


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