Buying Sex as Edgework: Hong Kong Male Clients in Commercial Sex

Commercial sex is a risky business and men who buy sex engage in a form of voluntary risky behaviour. Using Stephen Lyng’s notion of edgework, this qualitative study examines Hong Kong men who buy sex in Hong Kong/China and argues that these men’s engagement can be understood as a form of leisure ed...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kong, Travis (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2016
In: The British journal of criminology
Year: 2016, Volume: 56, Issue: 1, Pages: 105-122
Online Access: Volltext (Resolving-System)
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Summary:Commercial sex is a risky business and men who buy sex engage in a form of voluntary risky behaviour. Using Stephen Lyng’s notion of edgework, this qualitative study examines Hong Kong men who buy sex in Hong Kong/China and argues that these men’s engagement can be understood as a form of leisure edgework which balances risk and pleasure by negotiating the boundary between order and chaos. This article concludes that men buying sex can be seen as a form of resistance to normative companionate sexuality and the skills they exercise are key cultural principles needed in late-modern society. Edgework therefore plays an important role in modern intimacy, especially in shaping masculinity and men’s sexual scripts
ISSN:1464-3529
DOI:10.1093/bjc/azv040