Effects of Human Trafficking - Research Paper Example

This research paper analyses the different effects human trafficking has on the victims, their families, and society as a whole. The paper uses different articles, case studies, and research to identify these effects. The effects included in this paper range from medical, psychological, political, and economic to society and the victims themselves. The types of trafficking analyzed in this paper are sex trafficking, child trafficking, and labor trafficking to evaluate a wide range of different effects on different types of people. The main purpose of the research paper is to analyze the impact of the trafficking trade and its global impact, but this paper also lists the reasons as to why trafficking is increasing. The research paper uses different regions as examples and does not focus on one type of research in order to contain as much research possible. The paper also highlights different combative measures that are being introduced by organizations and governing authorities to prevent trafficking.

Keywords: Human Trafficking, Psychological, Economic

Introduction

Human trafficking is one of the largest human violations and crimes that take place around the world. This criminal offense has major effects economically, on society and on victims and their family’s mental health. The research paper will analyze at least six journals that talk about the different effects of trafficking from its psychological effects such as PTSD, depression, and anxiety and also will include articles that will dissect this research from a more global perspective. The human trafficking mentioned here will involve all forms from sex trafficking, child trafficking, and trafficking for labor. Human trafficking has been defined as modern slavery and a component of organized crime, which can include transportation of individuals for forced labor, prostitution under the guise of deception and fraud tactics for monetary or even marital promises. Trafficking has increased over the years due to inequality and easy access through technological innovations, including the dark web, and has transformed itself into a transnational organized crime that has spanned all over the world. There have been identified effects due to human trafficking, which will be discussed in the paper as this worrying topic has garnered awareness due to social media and other means.

Literature Review

Katerina Calvo, (2014), The Psychological Effects of Human Trafficking on the Second Generation.

This journal article explains how human trafficking can have psychological effects on the second generation of the victim’s families. The article not only explores the effect on mental health but also on public policy and social work in the neighborhoods. Human trafficking also affects children of the people that have been trafficked psychologically, as explained in the selected literature. Human trafficking does not only explain victims of sex trafficking and human trafficking, but the article also touches upon the effects that other traumas from slavery and genocide have had on the families of the victims and the community they reside in. The findings analyzed that the shame and guilt that is found in the victims is also passed on to the children and extended family of the victims. Many of the victims have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which can travel on to the second generation as they deal with symptoms of depression and anxiety, which affects the household environment. The article explains how children of sex trafficking victims and victims of the Holocaust have different feelings, especially in relation to anger and aggression, which the literature reasons as having justifiable reasons to explain the situation. The article evaluates through analyzing previous literature on PTSD and other traumas and relates it to the effects of human trafficking. Since our paper is about the overall effects of human trafficking, including all types of effects which is why this journal article is relevant to the basis of our research paper even though it focuses mainly on the psychological and mental health effects that trafficking has on the victims and their families. Trauma can be associated in different ways as it can cause not only major mental health problems but also cause cognitive issues such as blackouts, memory modifications, and even panic attacks due to flashbacks..

Dr. Alphonsus O. Njoku, (2015), Human Trafficking and its effects on national image: The Nigerian case

The selected literature focuses on human trafficking and its linkages to slavery and how it has affected the public perception from the country of Nigeria. This article deals with the social effects that human trafficking has on society as a whole, especially the instability it causes in Nigeria as many Nigerians and Nigerian youth has been victims of trafficking for labor and sex crimes to Asia, Europe, and the Middle East and started from as early as the 1990s. This effected the social profile of Nigeria as a whole and plummeted economic growth, unemployment, and political insecurity. Africa has a whole has many cases of human trafficking, which amount to thousands of children, women, and able-bodied men. The article analyzed different parts of Nigeria being involved in criminal offenses such as the Western part of the country has exploitation and trafficking cases for labor and working specifically on rubber farms. The literature then evaluates how this has shed Nigeria in a negative light as it portrays that the country cannot provide social welfare or protect its citizens and it also makes the citizens if the country feels insecure, keeping in mind that Nigeria is one of the richest countries in the African region. This literature is relevant to our research as it takes the issue from a global perspective and talks about the social effects that it has on a whole country and the negative image it causes all around the world. There are social and political implications of human trafficking on the country as well since it denotes a fragile environment and insecure living conditions.

David Okech, Stephen Vandiver McGarity, Nathan Hansen, Abigail C Burns & Waylon Howard (2017): Financial Capability and Sociodemographic Factors among Survivors of Human Trafficking.

Most trafficking cases are done for large amounts of money or under the coercion of receiving money, which is how many women and children are trafficked to different parts of the world. This article analyses the economic and financial effects that victims of trafficking go through, from not having safe spaces to not being able to receive because of their past situations. The article focuses on financial capability and not only from a literacy point of view but also as a means of institutions protecting these victims by providing them jobs and other means. The literature focuses on women specifically from the region of Africa who has been survivors of sex trafficking and also included other socio-economic variables such as level of education and remaining family members, including dependents and children alike. The research found that many victims were ashamed to ask for professional and governmental help as sex was considered a taboo subject, which creates issues for them financially. Even though this literature does not directly explain an effect, it does touch upon the financial implications for survivors of trafficking from the point of view that makes it easier to understand that trafficking victims are affected not only socially through a taboo view but also have to deal with financial issues. The article then explains how social work contributes to the livelihood of these survivors. Many victims are not awarded the same educational opportunities that would have been accessible to them if they had not been embroiled in such unfortunate circumstances. Many women in this study were not even aware of basic financial literacy measures such as saving, which resulted in a low financial capability .

Susie B. Baldwin, David P. Eisenman, Jennifer N. Sayles, Gerry Ryan, Kenneth S. Chuang (2011). Identification of human trafficking victims in health care settings

Trafficking has obvious effects on survivors as they have to go through horrible conditions from being kidnapped to force into labor and perform under horrible conditions. The medical effects are not only psychological but also physical, which is what is discussed in the research. Many of the inhumane conditions that survivors go through include poor sanitation, lack of food, and poor personal hygiene. It is essential to analyze the effects of these physical limitations. This journal article lists the ways a trafficking victim can be identified in a medical setting due to common physical conditions and medical conditions. The research interviewed many survivors, asking them questions to better identify personal and behavioral characteristics. This research is important in our study to evaluate the effects as it can clearly define the physical effects of human trafficking on victims. The survivors in the research reviewed the questions and stated they had been questioned about any abuse due to their poor physical health but could not answer due to linguistic restrictions, many of the health procedures of these victims were relative to the nature of their trafficking, sex trafficking victims had experienced STDs and unwanted pregnancies while victims forced into labor had physical health problems of broken and fractured body parts plus exhaustion. The research also identified barrier that can make it harder to identify victims such as inability to speak the language and monetary restrictions as many victims are not paid fair wages or even given the opportunity to get medical help, and they have to delay it especially in countries such as the United States where medical has to be insured .

Institute for Women’s Policy Research, (2017), The Economic Drivers and Consequences of Sex Trafficking in the United States

The research that has been selected for this review analyzes and focuses on the consequences that sex trafficking has for the country of the United States. The study and the participants in this research have all been found as survivors of trafficking in the area of Los Angeles. The paper identifies the commonly found issues in the other papers as well, including poor mental health conditions, physical health problems as well as finding it difficult to get back into society through access to employment opportunities and other financial constraints. Even though trafficking is a component of organized crime and creates wealth for so many of these criminals, it creates economic problems for the victims and their families. The paper identifies that victims are criminalized, which makes it harder for them to rebuild their lives while also experiencing problems of safety as they always feel vulnerable, especially victims of sex trafficking who have experiences and practiced prostitution. The literature in question lists many major issues that are faced as an effect of trafficking. The paper is important to our research analysis as it not only talks about the effects that it has through an economic perspective but also through the eyes of the justice system who portrays many sex trafficking victims as offenders and does not provide the protection that is needed, this creates an unsafe effect in the community as well as for the victims. The selected article also talks about the different legislation that has been curated in the United States to protect these victims and survivors through combatting efforts. The research, through an analysis of the American legal system and public policy measures, identifies ways in which trafficking victims can be helped, and combative measures can be comprehensively performed .

John R. Barner, David Okech and Meghan A. Camp, (2014), Socio-Economic Inequality, Human Trafficking, and the Global Slave Trade

The article selected for this part of the review discusses the various definitions of social inequality and how the differences in opportunities and equality create issues and problems. One of these problems is how the victims of trafficking are usually from a lower socio-economic class or dealing with poverty even though it has been clearly identified that trafficking victims and trafficking rings can operate from anywhere around the world and are not concentrated in one specific place. These unequal structures create an unbalanced and vicious cycle as one of the effects of trafficking is also creating economic burdens. The paper also talks about how low social capital connects to higher mortality rates. Trafficking is also done for monetary reasons where women and children and forced laborers have a fiscal price tag on them, which is there due to their economic background. Many victims are also coerced into trafficking through promises of money for them and their families, the global slave trade is established through this economic system of paying rings for laborers which happen to come from a low-income background. The research here talks about how eliminating socio-economic inequality can help eliminate trafficking or at least combat it in a better way. This can be related to the research above, which highlights the difficulties victims of trafficking face due to not having sufficient funds and finding it hard to sustain themselves. This piece of literature is beneficial for our research paper as it talks about not only the effects that trafficking has on creating inequality but also the reasons as to why they prevail which is all connected to income inequality at the end. Even though this literature does not outrightly specify the effects, it does, however, talk about the reasons which are incredibly important to the analysis and research on the subject.

Methods

The content analysis method is used for this research paper, which is a qualitative research method. Six journal articles are selected to write the literature review, and later content is analyzed based on the points provided in those articles. The important thing to note here is that all six journal articles are peer-reviewed journal articles. This means that the content provided in those articles in authentic and verified. It can be safely said that all the points which are mentioned in this research paper are credible since articles selected are from reputed journal articles.

Analysis

The research listed and identifies in the paper until now has talked about the different effects that human trafficking has on varying subjects. The articles in question have mentioned the immense psychological effects that are found in trafficking victims, which can range from PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Being in such horrific situations that lead to trafficking, especially for children, will obviously result in trauma, which has been identified in the research above to be passed on to second generations like in other traumatic incidents like the Holocaust. The medical conditions that are associated with the trafficking victims are not only mental health conditions but are also related to physical health. Many sex trafficking victims contract sexually transmitted diseases are forced to abort babies due to unwanted pregnancies, and also develop other health conditions such as infertility. Many survivors that are forced into labor are also found to have heart disease as an effect due to worrying and stressful situations, as well as chronic back pain and even broken limbs. Malnourishment and dental problems are also prevalent in many victims due to inhumane conditions in which they are left in or reside in. Many survivors of trafficking that escape the horrendous conditions can sometimes get substance abuse problems or experience alcoholism as a coping mechanism . Many of the victims cannot access medical practices due to language barriers as they are trafficked into different parts of the world where they may not speak the same language, and another problem is the mobility and financial issue of receiving medical care. Many of the victims who experience mental health problems do not get the medical attention that they need. The health effects of trafficking also affect communities since, as mentioned above, victims of sex trafficking frequently contract sexually transmitted diseases, and thus the community transmission can also be easier. Much of the research has also provided the demographics of the most common victims to be children and women who are forced into prostitution, labor, or even forced marriages.

A recurring effect that was found in the many articles and research done on this issue has found that many survivors experience problems in getting back into life with procuring relationships due to trust issues, finding employment, or any kind of monetary assistance. There is also an issue since prostitution has been criminalized in various countries, which makes it harder for many of the victims to find security or employment as they are even arrested at times. There have now been developed toolkits and mechanisms in place through the help of humanitarian interventions. One of these frameworks and tools has been a delivery service system created by the United States Department of Justice to integrate victims in the workforce, which creates training opportunities, as well as education programs for survivors that can help them integrate back into a society which also includes finding them jobs. These tools are important for our paper as the developers recognize the different effects that the trauma survivors face in the form of emotional trauma, physical and cognitive trauma in the form of flashbacks, and decreased working memory and even blackouts . As our research paper identifies the different effects, it also needs to identify ways in which these are being combatted as it also clues into the impacts. The effects of trafficking also include problems for the communities in the form of insecurity and fragility since many of these trafficking groups are organized crime groups whose activities can go beyond just trafficking and include other criminal offenses such as drug trafficking, murder, and even terrorism, so the rule of law is considered weak in the countries with concentrated regions of trafficking .

Conclusion

The literature analyzed in our paper has identified various impacts of trafficking on nations, victims, and their families. This horrendous act of transnational organized crime is a multi-billion-dollar industry that exploits people from all over the world and is a form of modern slavery. There were certain limitations in finding the overall effects of trafficking as it often has multiple variables, most of them were physical and psychological with very few resources on the economic impact of trafficking on the economies of the countries since most of the resources had a focus on the survivors and not the overall community. Human trafficking is modern slavery, which affects all regions of the world and not just the developing countries, even though many are victims from less developed countries. Most victims and survivors were women and children, especially in the cases of sex trafficking, which can result in not only transgenerational trauma but also decrease social capital. Trafficking victims should be protected through policies and should be provided with mental health support as well as financial incentives to make it easier for them to integrate back into society and be given a second chance. Future research should cover the effect of policies which are introduced to alleviate trafficking, to analyze whether the policies are efficient or not.

Analysis

The research listed and identifies in the paper until now has talked about the different effects that human trafficking has on varying subjects. The articles in question have mentioned the immense psychological effects that are found in trafficking victims, which can range from PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Being in such horrific situations that lead to trafficking, especially for children, will obviously result in trauma, which has been identified in the research above to be passed on to second generations like in other traumatic incidents like the Holocaust. The medical conditions that are associated with the trafficking victims are not only mental health conditions but are also related to physical health. Many sex trafficking victims contract sexually transmitted diseases are forced to abort babies due to unwanted pregnancies, and also develop other health conditions such as infertility. Many survivors that are forced into labor are also found to have heart disease as an effect due to worrying and stressful situations, as well as chronic back pain and even broken limbs. Malnourishment and dental problems are also prevalent in many victims due to inhumane conditions in which they are left in or reside in. Many survivors of trafficking that escape the horrendous conditions can sometimes get substance abuse problems or experience alcoholism as a coping mechanism . Many of the victims cannot access medical practices due to language barriers as they are trafficked into different parts of the world where they may not speak the same language, and another problem is the mobility and financial issue of receiving medical care. Many of the victims who experience mental health problems do not get the medical attention that they need. The health effects of trafficking also affect communities since, as mentioned above, victims of sex trafficking frequently contract sexually transmitted diseases, and thus the community transmission can also be easier. Much of the research has also provided the demographics of the most common victims to be children and women who are forced into prostitution, labor, or even forced marriages.

A recurring effect that was found in the many articles and research done on this issue has found that many survivors experience problems in getting back into life with procuring relationships due to trust issues, finding employment, or any kind of monetary assistance. There is also an issue since prostitution has been criminalized in various countries, which makes it harder for many of the victims to find security or employment as they are even arrested at times. There have now been developed toolkits and mechanisms in place through the help of humanitarian interventions. One of these frameworks and tools has been a delivery service system created by the United States Department of Justice to integrate victims in the workforce, which creates training opportunities, as well as education programs for survivors that can help them integrate back into a society which also includes finding them jobs. These tools are important for our paper as the developers recognize the different effects that the trauma survivors face in the form of emotional trauma, physical and cognitive trauma in the form of flashbacks, and decreased working memory and even blackouts . As our research paper identifies the different effects, it also needs to identify ways in which these are being combatted as it also clues into the impacts. The effects of trafficking also include problems for the communities in the form of insecurity and fragility since many of these trafficking groups are organized crime groups whose activities can go beyond just trafficking and include other criminal offenses such as drug trafficking, murder, and even terrorism, so the rule of law is considered weak in the countries with concentrated regions of trafficking . Read More