Mikael Jansson - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Mikael Jansson

Ethical Issues in Community-Based Research with Children and Youth, 2006

University of Toronto Press eBooks, Jan 31, 2006

University of Toronto Press eBooks, 2006

Ethical difficulties with consent in research involving children: Findings from key informant. is... more Ethical difficulties with consent in research involving children: Findings from key informant. issues in community-based research with children and youth. Ethics in community-based participatory research Case studies. Children and Young People / Dunedin: University of Otago, Centre for. custodians of Lismore, where the Centre for Children & Young People is based.. review which is focused on ethical issues related to research with children, who are .. communities in the United States, since the mid 1990s, to increase access to Ethical Issues in Community-Based Research with Children and Youth Engaging youth as researchers in community-based participatory research studies has. Research involving children and youth raises specific ethical issues, Ethical Issues in Community-based Research with Children and Youth 17 Dec 2010. Community-based research. Ethics. Youth. Rural. Decolonizing research in which they work, bringing about unique ethical considerations.. In addition, as my children include a mixed-race girl, and twin boys who are Celia B. Fisher-Fordham University Laura Swaine, Heartwood Centre for Community Youth Development. Stephen. Environmental Scan: Capturing Practice-Based Evidence. . Section 4: Analysis of Ethical Issues. Informed consent and research with children and youth .

This research was supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Catalyst Grant: HIV/AIDS ... more This research was supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Catalyst Grant: HIV/AIDS CBR Program - General Stream. We would like to thank our community partners for their contribution to the study design and curriculum, and especially to the local sex worker agency for hosting the program and providing personnel and other resources. Above all, we wish to thank the sex workers who participated in the training and personal interviews. Without their stories, this work would not have been possible.

CrimRxiv, 2021

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 2018

Prostitution stigma has been shown to negatively affect the work, personal lives, and health of s... more Prostitution stigma has been shown to negatively affect the work, personal lives, and health of sex workers. Research also shows that sex workers have much higher unmet health care needs than the general population. Less is known about how stigma obstructs their health-seeking behaviors. For our thematic analysis, we explored Canadian sex workers' accounts (N = 218) of accessing health care services for work-related health concerns. Results show that participants had mixed feelings about revealing their work status in health care encounters. Those who decided not to disclose were fearful of negative treatment or expressed confidentiality concerns or lack of relevancy. Those who divulged their occupational status to a health provider mainly described benefits, including nonjudgment, relationship building, and comprehensive care, while a minority experienced costs that included judgment, stigma, and inappropriate health care. Overall, health professionals in Canada appear to be doing a good job relating to sex workers who come forward for care. There is still a need for some providers to learn how to better converse with, diagnose, and care for people in sex work jobs that take into account the heavy costs associated with prostitution stigma.

Culture, Health & Sexuality, 2019

Stigma attached to sex workers' occupation, sometimes disparagingly referred to as 'prostitution'... more Stigma attached to sex workers' occupation, sometimes disparagingly referred to as 'prostitution' or 'whore' stigma, is a fundamental challenge for people in sex work. Yet sex workers are not powerless when confronting occupational stigma. We employed thematic analysis with data from in-person interviews conducted in 2012-13 with a diverse sample of 218 adult sex workers in Canada. Our participants perceived a high degree of occupational stigma, which they responded to and managed using four main strategies. First, some participants internalised negative discourses about their sex work and accepted their discredited status. Second, many controlled access to information about themselves, consciously keeping knowledge of their occupation from most people while sharing it with trusted others. Third, some participants rejected society's negative view of their occupation. Finally, some attempted to reduce the personal impact of stigma by reframing sex work to emphasise its positive and empowering elements. Participants often strategically responded to stigma contingent on the situated contexts of their work and personal life. We discuss these findings in relation to the existing knowledge base about stigma attached to sex workers' occupation as well as how these findings may direct future research on stigma strategies.

Archives of Sexual Behavior, 2018

Prostitution, payment for the exchange of sexual services, is deemed a major social problem in mo... more Prostitution, payment for the exchange of sexual services, is deemed a major social problem in most countries around the world today, with little to no consensus on how to address it. In this Target Article, we unpack what we discern as the two primary positions that undergird academic thinking about the relationship between inequality and prostitution: (1) prostitution is principally an institution of hierarchal gender relations that legitimizes the sexual exploitation of women by men, and (2) prostitution is a form of exploited labor where multiple forms of social inequality (including class, gender, and race) intersect in neoliberal capitalist societies. Our main aims are to: (a) examine the key claims and empirical evidence available to support or refute each perspective; (b) outline the policy responses associated with each perspective; and (c) evaluate which responses have been the most effective in reducing social exclusion of sex workers in societal institutions and everyday practices. While the overall trend globally has been to accept the first perspective on the "prostitution problem" and enact repressive policies that aim to protect prostituted women, punish male buyers, and marginalize the sex sector, we argue that the strongest empirical evidence is for adoption of the second perspective that aims to develop integrative policies that reduce the intersecting social inequalities sex workers face in their struggle to make a living and be included as equals. We conclude with a call for more robust empirical studies that use strategic comparisons of the sex sector within and across regions and between sex work and other precarious occupations.

Journal of Poverty, 2018

Many studies document links between income poverty, material hardship, and mental health; however... more Many studies document links between income poverty, material hardship, and mental health; however, we know less about the mental health consequences of within-person changes in income poverty and material hardship, particularly for lowincome workers. The authors examine these relationships with longitudinal data from a sample of frontline service workers interviewed in two cities (one each in the United States and Canada). Mixed-effects regression models show between-and within-person differences in income poverty are associated with changes in material hardship, and between-and withinperson differences in material hardship are associated with poorer mental health and depression. KEYWORDS material hardship; income poverty; mental health; depression A large body of research documents links between economic status and mental health (Elo, 2009). Much early research focused on an official measure of poverty (i.e., income poverty) particularly among the unemployed or people on some form of social assistance. It is now common to include other measures of economic standing, such as material hardship, and to include employed people. Yet many studies continue to use a static approach, measuring variables at only one point in time and focusing on differences between sample respondents. As a result, we know much less about how changes in people's economic status over time affect health. This is particularly the case for low-income people, as studies that examine relationships across the entire income distribution may not accurately represent the experiences of lower-income workers who may be more dependent on the cash economy. Several factors affect workers' movement in and out of poverty-changes in job situation or marital status, for example-but a key determinant is a change in income. Although fluctuations in earnings are neither occupation nor class specific, they are likely more frequent and more consequential CONTACT Bill McCarthy

Social Sciences, 2017

Background: The regulation of sex work is contentious in all countries, including for governments... more Background: The regulation of sex work is contentious in all countries, including for governments, the public, and sex workers themselves. Research shows sex workers' perspectives are ignored during policy formation in most cases. This is despite the fact they have unique insider knowledge and are directly affected by the policies that are enacted. Methods: We analyzed the accounts of a heterogeneous sample of adult sex workers (N = 218) residing in different urban cities in Canada to find out their views on current laws and their recommendations for reform. The interviews were conducted in 2012-2013 prior to the implementation of the 2014 Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act. The paper thus provides an opportunity to compare the changes desired by Canadian sex workers with changes put into law by the Act. Results: Although the interview questions did not directly ask about the current legal system, 121 expressed an opinion. Three main themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: (1) the challenges that criminalization posed to sex workers; (2) the workers' suggestions for legal reform; and (3) potential issues with legal reform. Conclusions: We discuss the contributions our qualitative findings make to the scholarship on sex work regulation and call for further research that includes sex workers' voices in decision-making regarding changes to policies affecting their lives.

Canadian Public Policy, 2016

Confidence in the police is fundamental to citizens' willingness to report unlawful behaviour... more Confidence in the police is fundamental to citizens' willingness to report unlawful behaviour, share intelligence about crime, seek help when victimized, and generally comply with the law. Marginalized groups overwhelmingly report a lack of confidence that police will apply the law fairly. Although sex work research reports a wide range of negative experiences with the police, it is not known how common these experiences are because most research focuses solely on street-based sex workers and does not include quantitative measures. We report on confidence in the police through the analysis of relevant data gathered from in-person interviews with sex workers from six census metropolitan areas of Canada. Under the pre-2014 legal regime, our non-random sample of sex workers had lower confidence in police than estimated for other Canadians by the General Social Survey and were particularly unlikely to see police as treating sex workers fairly. Thematic analysis suggests this is prim...

International Journal for Equity in Health, 2017

Background: Social marginalization and criminalization create health and safety risks for sex wor... more Background: Social marginalization and criminalization create health and safety risks for sex workers and reduce their access to health promotion and prevention services compared to the general population. Community empowerment-based interventions that prioritize the engagement of sex workers show promising results. Peer-to-peer interventions, wherein sex workers act as educators of their colleagues, managers, clients and romantic partners, foster community mobilization and critical consciousness among sex workers and equip them to exercise agency in their work and personal lives. Methods: A pilot peer health education program was developed and implemented, with and for sex workers in one urban centre in Canada. To explore how the training program contributed to community empowerment and transformative learning among participants, the authors conducted qualitative interviews, asked participants to keep personal journals and to fill out feedback forms after each session. Thematic analysis was conducted on these three data sources, with emerging themes identified, organized and presented in the findings. Results: Five themes emerged from the analysis. Our findings show that the pilot program led to reduced internalized stigma and increased self-esteem in participants. Participants' critical consciousness increased concerning issues of diversity in cultural background, sexual orientation, work experiences and gender identity. Participants gained knowledge about how sex work stigma is enacted and perpetuated. They also became increasingly comfortable challenging negative judgments from others, including frontline service providers. Participants were encouraged to actively shape the training program, which fostered positive relationships and solidarity among them, as well as with colleagues in their social network and with the local sex worker organization housing the program. Resources were also mobilized within the sex worker community through skills building and knowledge acquisition. Conclusion: The peer education program proved successful in enhancing sex workers' community empowerment in one urban setting by increasing their knowledge about health issues, sharing information about and building confidence in accessing services, and expanding capacity to disseminate this knowledge to others. This 'proof of concept' built the foundation for a long-term initiative in this setting and has promise for other jurisdictions wishing to adapt similar programs.

Culture, health & sexuality, Jan 26, 2017

Sex work is assumed to have a negative effect on self-esteem, nearly exclusively expressed as low... more Sex work is assumed to have a negative effect on self-esteem, nearly exclusively expressed as low self-worth, due to its social unacceptability and despite the diversity of persons, positions and roles within the sex industry. In this study, we asked a heterogeneous sample of 218 Canadian sex workers delivering services in various venues about how their work affected their sense of self. Using thematic analysis based on a three-dimensional conception of self-esteem - self-worth (viewing oneself in a favourable light), authenticity (being one's true self) and self-efficacy (competency) - we shed light on the relationship between involvement in sex work and self-esteem. Findings demonstrate that the relationship between sex work and self-esteem is complex: the majority of participants discussed multiple dimensions of self-esteem and often spoke of how sex work had both positive and negative effects on their sense of self. Social background factors, work location and life events an...

Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique, Jan 20, 2016

This paper examines unmet health care needs in one of Canada's most hard-to-reach populations... more This paper examines unmet health care needs in one of Canada's most hard-to-reach populations, adult sex workers, and investigates whether their reasons for not accessing health care are different from those of other Canadians. Data gathered in 2012-2013 from sex workers aged 19 and over (n = 209) in five Canadian census metropolitan areas (CMAs) were analyzed to estimate the perceived health, health care access and level of unmet health care needs of sex workers, and their principal reasons for not accessing health care. These data were collected using questions identical to those of the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) Cycle 2.1, 2003. The results were compared with those of residents aged 19 and over in the same CMAs who had participated in the CCHS. Sex workers reported notably worse perceived mental health, poorer social determinants of health (with the exception of income) and nearly triple the prevalence of unmet health care needs (40.4% vs. 14.9%). Those with the ...

Canadian Public Policy, 2015

A large body of research shows a link between stigma and poor health; yet stigma is complex and i... more A large body of research shows a link between stigma and poor health; yet stigma is complex and involves several processes. This paper employs a social determinants of health perspective to shed light on the link between work and one dimension of stigma—discrimination. It examines discrimination and depression with data from a comparative study of three front-line service jobs: sex work, serving food and alcohol, and barbering and hairstyling. Our findings show positive associations between depression and the most highly stigmatized occupation—sex work—and between discrimination and depression. Discrimination mediates part of the association between sex work and depression, and self-worth partially mediates the association between discrimination and depression. Equity policies that improve their social determinants will contribute to better mental health for sex industry workers. Additional strategies aimed at reducing the formidable discrimination linked to their work are also urge...

Annual Review of Law and Social Science, 2012

In this article, we examine various legal strategies used to regulate the sale and purchase of se... more In this article, we examine various legal strategies used to regulate the sale and purchase of sexual services. We use three broad categories to structure our discussion: full criminalization, partial decriminalization, and full decriminalization. In each section, we discuss laws directed toward the control of sellers, buyers, and third parties. We focus on legislation and practices at the highest level of aggregation (i.e., the national, state, or provincial level), and due to limited data, we concentrate on high-income countries. We present a critical assessment of each legal approach and conclude with a call for future research on the consequences of different legal strategies for sellers, buyers, and third parties.

Sociology of health & illness, Jan 16, 2015

Stigma is a widely used concept in social science research and an extensive literature claims tha... more Stigma is a widely used concept in social science research and an extensive literature claims that stigmatisation contributes to numerous negative health outcomes. However, few studies compare groups that vary in the extent to which they are stigmatised and even fewer studies examine stigma's independent and mediating effects. This article addresses these gaps in a comparative study of perceived stigma and drug use among three low-income feminised service occupations: sex work, food and alcoholic beverage serving, and barbering and hairstyling. An analysis of longitudinal data shows positive associations between sex work, perceived stigma, and socially less acceptable drug use (for example, heroin and cocaine), and that stigma mediates part of the link between sex work and the use of these drugs. Our overall findings suggest that perceived stigma is pronounced among those who work in the sex industry and negatively affects health independently of sex work involvement.

Human Ecology, 2012

A basic ecological and epidemiological question is why some women enter into commercial sex work ... more A basic ecological and epidemiological question is why some women enter into commercial sex work while other women in the same socioeconomic environment never do. To address this question respondent driven sampling principles were adopted to recruit and collect data for 161 female sex workers and 159 same aged women who never engaged in commercial sex in Kibera, a large informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya. Univariate analysis indicated that basic kinship measures, including number of family members seen during adolescence and at present, not having a male guardian while growing up, and earlier times of ending relationships with both male and female guardians were associated with commercial sex work in Kibera. Multivariate analysis via logistic regression modeling showed that not having a male guardian during childhood, low education attainment and a small number of family members seen at adolescence were all significant predictors of entering sex work. By far the most important predictor of entering sex work was not having any male guardian, e.g., father, uncle, older brother, etc. during childhood. Results are interpreted in light of the historic pattern of sub-Saharan African child fostering and their relevance for young women in Kibera today.

Qualitative Health Research, 2009

Although scientists are continually refining existing knowledge and producing new evidence to imp... more Although scientists are continually refining existing knowledge and producing new evidence to improve health care and health care delivery, far too little scientific output finds its way into the tool kits of practitioners. Likewise, the questions that clinicians would like to be answered all too rarely get taken up by researchers. In this article we focus on knowledge translation challenges accompanying a longitudinal research program with nonprofit organizations providing direct and indirect health and social services to disadvantaged groups in one region of Canada. Three essential factors influencing authentic and reciprocal knowledge transfer and utilization between nonprofit service providers and researchers are discussed: strong institutional partnerships, the use of skilled knowledge brokers, and the meaningful involvement of frontline personnel.