Male Escorts' Construction of the Boyfriend Experience: How Escorts Please Their Clients

ABSTRACTThe current study examines the ways that male escorts provide highly desired services for male clients. Building on the “girlfriend experience” identified in the female prostitution literature, the authors discuss the corollary experience of the “boyfriend experience” and identify and examine the components of the boyfriend experience that are central to the social construction of the experience. Data is drawn from 627 online reviews of male escorts written between 2015 and 2016. Following data collection, analytic induction, using a 3-step coding process, is used to identify themes. The authors argue that the boyfriend experience is constructed out of perceptions of companionship, authenticity, and passion in both social and sexual interactions. Reviews emphasize the importance of intimacy, socialization, and emotional connections experienced between customer/escort and show that such are commonly more important and valued than sexual gratification.