Male Strippers Relationships and Their Experiences with Soft Stigma

• In Event: 306 - Section on Sociology of Sexualities Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 10. Sex Work

Abstract

While stripping has been an attractive topic among sociologists for several decades, much of the existing research concentrates on women who dance for men (WDM) and men who dance for men (MDM). In this study, I use qualitative methods to understand the experiences of men who dance for women (MDW). I spent 18 months at a strip club that I call “Dandelion’s,” and conducted 22 in-depth interviews with male strippers. Specifically, my goal was to explore dancers’ relationships to others and the extent to which they experience negative reactions and social stigmas due to their occupation. Specifically, I looked at dancers’ relationships with coworkers, customers, romantic partners, family members, and friends. Overall, I discovered that male dancers faced “soft stigmas” rather than the hard stigmas that female strippers often face.

Author

• Maren Taylor Scull, University of Colorado-Denver