Introduction
The problem of human trafficking affects people all over the world, which defines the need for a comprehensive approach to this issue from the criminology perspective. According to de Vries and Radford (2022), it is vital to explore this type of crime to enhance one’s understanding of its nature and associated factors. In particular, poverty is considered one of the aspects that aggravate the problem (Naik, 2018). This paper explores the relationship between human trafficking as the dependent variable (DV) and poverty as the independent variable (IV). Understanding this connection is crucial since it can help decrease the rates and adverse effects of human trafficking crime, supporting vulnerable populations. The research question for this study is as follows: to what extent, if any, does poverty contribute to human trafficking? This paper aims to discuss the existing body of knowledge regarding the subject, identify the gap, and address it by explaining the potential relationship between human trafficking and poverty from a theoretical perspective.
Overview of the Subject
Human trafficking is considered one of the serious crimes that affect different populations disproportionately. As noted by Leslie (2018), at least 18,000 people are affected by this problem annually in the United States (p. 282). It is worth noting that this crime can take many forms and involve sexual and physical abuse, threats, fraud, deception, use of force, and victims’ vulnerability for exploitation purposes (Paraskevas & Brookes, 2018). One of the demographic variables that are thought to affect human trafficking is poverty, which makes certain populations more susceptible to manipulation and fraud. Women, children, migrants, ethnic minorities, and other social groups often do not have equal access to economic and financial resources, which limits their power and self-sufficiency (Ezeibe et al., 2021). As a result, such individuals can appear as potential victims for the offender since they can be manipulated or threatened easily.
At the same time, it is still unclear to what extent poverty can contribute to human trafficking. One of the theoretical approaches proposed in this study is the biological theory in criminology. By applying this perspective to the phenomenon of human trafficking, one can discover the relationship between the dependent and independent variables. In other words, to answer the research question, it is essential to dive into the reasoning behind the offender’s behavior which can be explored from the biological perspective. The research question of this study will help to address the gap in the literature by examining the problem from a biological standpoint. It is closely related to inner and outer factors that can be altered, impacting the offender’s behavior.
The Potential Relationship between the Variables
The potential relationship between human trafficking and poverty can be explained through a theoretical lens. Namely, the biological theory can be applied to explain the offender’s abusive and manipulative behavior towards victims. Tolla & Singh (2018) state that human trafficking can be referred to as modern slavery, which accurately captures the essence of this crime. In contrast to the classical school of thought, a positivist approach to criminal behavior assumes that various inner and outer factors contribute to criminal behavior (Ezeibe et al., 2021). The biological theory states that an individual does not have control over their decision to violate the law. In turn, physical, sociological, or psychological causes can be determined as factors affecting human behavior. Such an approach to crimes implements a scientific method and promotes a rehabilitation model contrary to punishment under the classical theory. As can be seen, the biological theory of crime focuses on exploring biological deviations in people who committed crimes.
The biological approach assumes that criminals display deviant behaviors due to inner and outer factors, including genetics, neurotransmitters, substance abuse, diseases, hormonal disorders, brain structure, or medication use (Tolla & Singh, 2018). These biological causes can impact one’s cognitive functions, contributing to violent and abusive actions toward defenseless individuals. In particular, one of the demographic variables that are thought to affect human trafficking is poverty, which makes certain populations more vulnerable to manipulation and fraud. People from low-income households are more affected by manipulation and abuse. Furthermore, they often belong to social groups that are generally at a higher risk of violence and discrimination due to a lack of power in modern society. Consequently, for individuals with deviant behavior tendencies resulting from biological causes, vulnerable populations can give the impression of potential victims since they are less protected from manipulation.
Conclusion/ Policy/Future Research
To conclude, the relationship between human trafficking and poverty must be studied through the application of the biological theory of crime to address the gap in the literature. It can explain how inner and outer factors affect the offender’s behavior toward vulnerable populations. As a result, one policy that would help to address this problem would be supporting low-income households to help eliminate risk factors for manipulation and fraud. At the same time, one area that should be studied further is the role of various biological factors in the criminal’s behavior. Ezeibe et al. (2021) explore the subject and promote sustainability instead of vulnerability. However, there is not sufficient knowledge regarding the extent of the biological factors’ impact on the offender’s attitude and actions.
References
Ezeibe, C., Oguonu, C., Ajaero, C. K., Osadebe, N., Agbo, H., & Uwaechia, O. (2021). From vulnerability to sustainability: Implementation of free education programmes and reversal of child trafficking in Nigeria. Journal of Human Trafficking, 7(1), 104-118.
Leslie, J. (2018). Human trafficking: Clinical assessment guideline. Journal of Trauma Nursing| JTN, 25(5), 282-289.
Naik, A. B. (2018). Impacts, causes and consequences of women trafficking in India from human rights perspective. Social Sciences, 7(2), 76-80.
Paraskevas, A., & Brookes, M. (2018). Nodes, guardians and signs: Raising barriers to human trafficking in the tourism industry. Tourism Management, 67, 147-156.
Tolla, A. D., & Singh, S. (2018). Child trafficking (modern slavery) in Ethiopia: Review on status and national response. Child Abuse Research in South Africa, 19(1), 58-70.
de Vries, I., & Radford, J. (2022). Identifying online risk markers of hard-to-observe crimes through semi-inductive triangulation: The case of human trafficking in the United States. The British Journal of Criminology, 62(3), 639-658.