About 10 percent of the respondents indicated that they had paid for sex at some point in their lives. This number is similar to that obtained in other studies, although the percentage is typically somewhat higher in countries where prostitution is legal or tolerated.
But as Catherine Hakim points out, men, on average, have higher sex drives than women at all ages, and this gap only widens with age. While young women usually have no problem attracting as many sex partners as they want, some older women have little desire for sex.
This widening gap between the sex drives of men and women leads to what Hakim calls the “male sexual deficit.” Especially as men enter into middle age, they often find themselves with a spouse who is no longer interested in sex. Those older men who can still attract younger women will do so, either by having extramarital affairs or else by divorcing and remarrying. Meanwhile, those who can’t do so may turn to sex workers instead to meet their sexual needs.
Catherine Hakim, argues that the male sex deficit is so great that sex work can never be completely abolished, since there will always be young women willing to make their living by meeting the needs of “generous gentlemen.” Thus, criminalizing the sex trade only makes it more dangerous for sex workers to ply their trade.
Then how do we best protect the women who engage in sex work? Jerald Mosley, a retired attorney at the California Department of Justice, conducted extensive interviews with sex workers and found that they overwhelmingly had a positive attitude toward their profession. This further suggests that legalizing or decriminalizing sex work is the best way to protect the women and men who choose to engage in this line of work.