Date of Award
5-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Industrial Engineering
Committee Chair/Advisor
Thomas Sharkey
Committee Member
Tugce Isik
Committee Member
Yongjia Song
Committee Member
Emily Tucker
Abstract
One of the largest drivers of sex trafficking operations is the demand for commercial sex. To date, research from a quantitative side typically focuses on understanding how to best identify and remove victims from their trafficking situation and then support their healing and recovery. This may be because this is where data exists (in limited forms) to support quantitative modeling. This thesis broadens that scope to understand how demand for commercial sex impacts trafficking operations. In particular, this research implemented a transdisciplinary, survivor-centered approach to build a system dynamics model of a closed-buyer sex trafficking network, which is a network where a trafficker controls who purchases sex through a vetting process. It offers a proof of concept of what a potential validated system dynamics model could yield in terms of analytical capabilities. This work has integrated the expertise of a survivor-centered advisory group through the entirety of building the model, leading to many novel trafficking insights obtained through a ‘systems thinking’ lens. These insights present future paths for research and illuminates a new way of thinking in terms of sex trafficking operations.
Recommended Citation
Yow, Kemonte, "A Transdisicplinary, Survivor-Centered Approach for Creating A System Dynamics Model Of Closed-Buyer Sex Trafficking Networks" (2024). All Theses. 4289.
https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_theses/4289