Women traficking in Peshawar, Pakistan: does socio-psychological perception matter?

Abstract

The present study was conducted in District Jail, Peshawar, Pakistan by selecting 84 offenders involved in Women Trafficking, through snow ball sampling techniques for measuring the
respondent’s knowledge on women trafficking with the psychological aspect, leading to women trafficking. Majority of the respondents i.e. (79.8%) considered little effects of social stigmatization followed by forced marriage for money (73.8%), feigned love (69.0%) and identifying normative behavior (61.9%) as the major causes of women trafficking in the study area. Moreover, a moderate but negative relation was determined between force marriage for money (Ƴ =-0.418), early age group women fall prey to women trafficking (Ƴ =-0.40) and a positive relationship between little effects of stigmatization (Ƴ =0.310) with knowledge on women trafficking. In addition, a significant but negative relationship was also ascertained between forced marriage for money (p<0.05) with knowledge on women trafficking. The study concluded that the respondents had a clear vision of fatal consequences of women trafficking to the society, with no societal endorsement to love marriages rather adherence to the traditional arranged marriages, marriages for money was although in practice etc. the people faith in early marriage as pro religion. A comprehensive campaign on print and electronic media to propagate women trafficking as a curse to the society, strict punishment through legislative bodies approval, revisiting the religious concept of early marriages and cultural perspectives based on normative behavior while focusing on assimilation through academic research were forwarded as policy recommendations in light f the study.

Key Words: Women Trafficking, Attitude, Knowledge, and Measurement.