Predictors and Patterns of Transactional Sex with Casual Partners Among Adult Men Living in an Informal Urban Area, South Africa

‘I trap her with a CD, then tomorrow find her with a big old man who bought her a smart phone’. Constructions of masculinities and transactional sex: a qualitative study from North-Western Tanzania

“…Our analysis showed that men controlled and coerced women and girls through transactional sex. These findings resonate with other studies in the region that have also found a link between transactional sex and men's attempts to uphold gendered inequalities (Magni et al 2020;Closson et al 2020), Findings also showed how transactional sex created and reinforced hierarchies among men, where young men were commonly inferior to older men. For both younger and older men, economic provision is an expected and desirable social norm (Bicchieri 2005), but it was not easily attainable for the younger men in transactional sex relationships in our sample.…”

“…Men described material provision in relationships as central to 'being a man', a prerequisite for all sexual relationships, an expression of love, and a means of capitalising on women's and girls' and women's material dependence through transactional sex. Our findings show how transactional sex can enable men to fulfil the gendered norm of men's material provision, by perpetuating women's' and girls' economic dependence on men, and highlighting men's social dominance over women (Magni et al 2020;Fielding-Miller and Dunkle 2017;Jewkes, Morrell, and Lindegger 2012;Beasley 2008;Dunkle et al 2007;Silberschmidt and Rasch 2001).…”

Correlates of Transactional Sex Among Black Men and Women Who Misuse Opioids

“…Although Black men who misuse opioids may find themselves vulnerable to impoverishment (Nicholson & Ford, 2018), the men in the current study were engaging in transactional sex because their sex partner needed money, resources, or goods from them. Similar to previous research, the men in the current study may also engage in transactional sex to exert power and control over their female counterparts (Magni et al, 2020) or to express their masculinity by demonstrating their ability to provide despite social disempowerment. Previous research on Mexican men found that those who engage in transactional sex often framed their experiences as reciprocal gift-and-aid giving rather than a sex exchange (Wentzell, 2014).…”

From Survival to Glamour: Motivations for Engaging in Transactional Sex and Relationships Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa

“…Some of our male respondents explained their preference for relationships that are transactional in nature as it puts them in a position of power and indispensability as the provider. Transactions related to sex have been described as an embedded expectation in heterosexual romantic relationships in South Africa [ 12 , 29 ]. Our findings support the notion that men’s role as providers is linked to masculine identities, and young men’s sense of self–esteem [ 2 ].…”

“…Young men and women also need to be encouraged to reflect on relationship and sexual values, and the gendered expectations of male provision and what it “buys” men in return [ 7 , 8 ]. ‘Gender transformative interventions’ that aim to critically address shared societal expectations that women should have sex with men in return for their material/financial support, and work to challenge provider norms, masculinity and the concept of control of women in heterosexual relationships, should also be combined with economic empowerment interventions for AGYW that may help to reduce the extent to which AGYW need to rely on male providers [ 29 , 30 ]. Importantly, Wamoyi and Stoebenau (2018) make the recommendation that instead of interventions trying to address the practice of transactional sex itself, they should rather try to address the associated HIV risks, and integrate measures into broader empowerment and health interventions, rather than attempt to intervene on transactional sex alone.…”