A Cross-sectional Comparison of the Mental Health of People Trafficked to the UK for Domestic Servitude, for Sexual Exploitation and for Labor Exploitation

Author: Rose, Alexandra; Howard, Louise; Zimmerman, Cathy & Oram, Sian

Abstract: The experiences and needs of trafficking victims have received increasing attention. However, variation in the experiences and needs of people trafficked for different types of labor have been poorly explored. People trafficked for domestic servitude may represent a particularly vulnerable group but are typically subsumed within labor exploitation. Our aim is to describe the characteristics, experiences, and mental health outcomes of a sample of trafficking victims, comparing across different types of exploitation. Using survey data, descriptive statistics and comparisons between groups were calculated using chi-squared tests and regressions. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to control for gender. Forty-four (29.3%) participants reported exploitation for domestic servitude, 43 (28.7%) for sexual exploitation, and 59 (39.3%) for other labor. Those exploited for domestic servitude reported higher levels of mental health problems, though this may be confounded by gender. Those exploited for domestic servitude also reported more experiences of violence and restriction than the other labor group, differences remaining after the sensitivity analysis. Researchers should disaggregate results by type of exploitation. Practitioners and policymakers should be aware of and responsive to the high prevalence of experiences of violence and restriction and mental health problems in people trafficked for domestic servitude to ensure their recovery.

Keywords: mental health, minority issues and cross-cultural psychiatry, violence, women, human trafficking, domestic servitude, labor exploitation