Adolescent compensated dating: perception and preference of handling among different stakeholders in Hong Kong

Compensated dating,” or “teen prostitution,” is a global concern that has drawn the attention of researchers, policy makers, and helping professionals. This phenomenon has been particularly prevalent in Asian countries. Although many previous studies have examined the patterns, contributing forces, and consequences of compensated dating involving young people, very few studies have investigated public views of interventions to combat compensated dating. This study is intended to fill this gap. Using questionnaire survey with about 1,200 respondents, this study aims at confirming if the stakeholders’ preference of handling youth compensated dating ranging from private, parochial, criminal justice to helping professional levels is predicted by their perception of compensated dating and their demographic characteristics. Implications for policy and practices are discussed. To our knowledge, this study is the first empirical work investigating the stakeholders’ view on an under-investigated topic −youth compensated dating in a Chinese community.