2019/09/16 by Maren T. Scull · 1 citation
Psychology · Social Sciences · #Gender, Feminism, and Media #Sex work and related issues #Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1177/0731121419875115
openalex publication_date 2019/09/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
Although academics have focused on sugaring in various parts of the globe, sugar relationships in the United States have largely been ignored. The few studies that address these arrangements in the United States often frame them as a form of prostitution. Drawing from 48 in-depth interviews with women in the United States who have been in sugar relationships, I adopt a connected lives approach to explore the structure of these arrangements and to assess the extent to which they are a form of prostitution. Overall, I found that, although there is a dominant, subcultural relationship script that serves as a blueprint for sugar arrangements, they comprise their own unique relational package and take a variety of forms when enacted on an interpersonal level. Specifically, I identified seven types of sugar relationships, only one of which can be considered prostitution. These included sugar prostitution, compensated dating, compensated companionship, sugar dating, sugar friendships, sugar friendships with benefits, and pragmatic love.