The Mediating Role of Social Stigma on the Relationship of the Generational Differences between Filipino towards the Readiness on Decriminalizing the Oldest Profession

Studies have shown that stigma affects the implementation, support, and acceptance of policies introduced to mitigate the issues associated with sex work, the oldest profession, in different countries and cultures worldwide. Here we determined the level of social stigma across three living generations of Filipinos and their readiness for the possibility of decriminalizing the oldest prosfession in the Philippines using research-made survey questionnaires deliberately validated by psychometricians. Respondents across three generations of Filipinos, namely, Generation Z, Millennials, and Generation X, were included in this study. The results showed a high level of social stigma towards sex work across the generations and a high level of readiness toward decriminalizing sex work. However, there is a noticeable difference in the levels of social stigma and readiness among the respondents. Generation X showed the highest level of social stigma towards sex work, while Generation Z showed the lowest level of social stigma. On the readiness towards decriminalizing sex work, Generation Z showed the highest level, while Generation X showed the lowest level among the respondents. Analysis of this data showed no relationship between generational difference and readiness towards decriminalizing sex work. However, mediation analysis resulted in a positive outcome showing that social stigma is a mediator in the relationship between generational difference and readiness towards decriminalizing sex work. This implies that social stigma impacts an individual's readiness of an individual regardless of age or generation. Contrary to the idea that older people could be more resistant to decriminalizing sex work and younger people more open to this idea, this research shows that regardless of age or generation, a person can be ready or not ready to accept this change depending on their level of social stigma associated towards sex work.