Who Knows More When it Comes to Trafficking?: A Comparative Analysis of Practitioners and Future Practitioners

• In Event: Attitudes and perceptions about human trafficking

Abstract

A series of political, economic, and cultural shifts following the end of the Bosnian War has led to Bosnia and Herzegovina becoming a source and destination for human sex trafficking. Little is understood about the criminal justice response to this industry, however, due to a lack of reliable official data and practitioner confusion about the distinction between human trafficking and prostitution. This paper will serve to assess the extent of criminal justice professionals’ knowledge of human trafficking, as well as their perceptions of victims. This information will then be compared to that of criminal justice students in that country, who are believed to eventually enter the field and come into contact with such cases. Results from univariate and bivariate statistics indicate differences between the groups; the implications of which will be discussed.

Authors

• Molly Smith, Sam Houston State University

• Lisa Muftic, Sam Houston State University

• Jonathan A. Grubb, Sam Houston State University

• Irma Deljkic, University of Sarajevo