Wednesday, 12 November, 2025
About one in three Israeli men surveyed said they had paid for sex at least once, and higher levels of religiosity were associated with sharply lower odds of doing so, according to a new peer-reviewed study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior.
The research found that 308 of 934 men, or 33%, reported having paid for sex at least once, while each step up in religiosity corresponded to a 38% reduction in the odds of engaging in sex payment.
The study, conducted by Tel Aviv University scholars Guy Shilo, Inbar Malka, and Einat Peled, is titled “Paying for Sex Among Heterosexual Men in Israel: The Role of Gender Role Conflict, Distress, and Attitudes.” It analyzed a sample of 934 heterosexual Israeli men and examined psychological distress, dimensions of gender role conflict, and attitudes toward paying for sex.
Beyond the strong religiosity effect, the authors report that attitudes toward paying for sex were the most powerful predictors of the behavior.
Viewing payment as “legitimate” was tied to higher odds of having paid for sex, while viewing it as “deviant” was tied to lower odds. “Among all variables examined, the attitudes toward paying for sex, both as legitimate and deviant, emerged as the strongest predictors of paying for sex,” the report states.
The analysis also explored how men’s emotional strain and masculine-norm pressures relate to sex buying. In models that included attitudes, earlier links between distress and several components of gender role conflict were no longer significant, indicating that attitudes fully mediated these relationships.
In the authors’ words, “Attitudes toward paying for sex, more than distress or GRC alone, appear to play a central role in shaping the likelihood of engaging in sex payment.”
Israel has adopted an “end-demand” approach that criminalizes paying for sex while offering educational programs for offenders, aligning with a broader trend in several Western countries.
The study situates its findings within this policy context, noting international disagreements over criminalization and efforts aimed at curbing demand by reshaping public attitudes.
Comments
About one in three Israeli men surveyed said they had paid for sex at least once, and higher levels of religiosity were associated with sharply lower odds of doing so, according to a new peer-reviewed study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior.
The research found that 308 of 934 men, or 33%, reported having paid for sex at least once, while each step up in religiosity corresponded to a 38% reduction in the odds of engaging in sex payment.
The study, conducted by Tel Aviv University scholars Guy Shilo, Inbar Malka, and Einat Peled, is titled “Paying for Sex Among Heterosexual Men in Israel: The Role of Gender Role Conflict, Distress, and Attitudes.” It analyzed a sample of 934 heterosexual Israeli men and examined psychological distress, dimensions of gender role conflict, and attitudes toward paying for sex.
Beyond the strong religiosity effect, the authors report that attitudes toward paying for sex were the most powerful predictors of the behavior.
Viewing payment as “legitimate” was tied to higher odds of having paid for sex, while viewing it as “deviant” was tied to lower odds. “Among all variables examined, the attitudes toward paying for sex, both as legitimate and deviant, emerged as the strongest predictors of paying for sex,” the report states.
The analysis also explored how men’s emotional strain and masculine-norm pressures relate to sex buying. In models that included attitudes, earlier links between distress and several components of gender role conflict were no longer significant, indicating that attitudes fully mediated these relationships.
In the authors’ words, “Attitudes toward paying for sex, more than distress or GRC alone, appear to play a central role in shaping the likelihood of engaging in sex payment.”
Israel has adopted an “end-demand” approach that criminalizes paying for sex while offering educational programs for offenders, aligning with a broader trend in several Western countries.
The study situates its findings within this policy context, noting international disagreements over criminalization and efforts aimed at curbing demand by reshaping public attitudes.
Comments
