Buying the Girlfriend Experience: An Exploration of the Consumption Experiences of Male Customers of Escorts
Article in Russell W. Belk, Kent Grayson, Albert M. Muñiz, Hope Jensen Schau (ed.) Research in Consumer Behavior (Research in Consumer Behavior, Volume 13), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp.111-126. This research explored the experiences of male customers of escorts who provide a sexual service known as the “girlfriend experience” or GFE. Methodology/approach: A combination of depth interviews and netnography is used to study how men experience the GFE. Findings: Unlike most customer-sex worker encounters, the GFE involves more than the exchange of money for sex; to derive the full value of the experience, the consumer must not only pay the
