Prostitution and sex Discrepancy
The national survey on sex and prostitution studies is highly biased and unreliable since the male samples over report on their sex partners while the female respondents underreport. Globally, the behavior of overreporting and underreporting has been prevalent and can either be linked to sampling bias or sex-linked reporting bias. The study has used prostitution-related sampling bias in its explanation for the existing disparity.
Cross-sectional surveys on adults under the age of 60 living in the United States were carried out in the study. In my opinion, the researchers were biased on the age limit that they used. In the current generation, the elderly men of above 60 years and including as old as 70 are reported to have sexual relations with young girls. The researchers made use of data that was based on self-administered questionnaires where the response options were available in ranges like 21-100. The greater option of the figures in the range was used in the survey which increased the probability of bias. A respondent might have been with 25 sexual partners in the 21-100 range, but the survey assumed and recorded that they had 100 partners. The study relied on the estimates of heterosexual men and women from the United States population level instead of the relying on the samples in the survey. Between the period of 1970-1988 reflected a number of 23 female prostitutes per 100,000 persons in the USA. However, the estimations were derived from sexually transmitted disease records and the police recorded in Colorado Springs.
The choice of the prostitutes from a limited region increased the bias because the prevalence for partners may vary depending on the economic development of the location. The researchers in the study have also agreed to use assumptions on the rates of entry and exit of prostitution where they believed that the frequency was similar to that of Colorado Springs Cohort of prostitutes. The study further increased the discrepancy by doubling the 6-month mean for the male prostitutes which resulted in a higher number of partners for men. The assumptions could have been avoided if only the study has considered the possibility of female prostitutes having a higher number of partners within the united states in the last 25 years. The GSS study between 1988- 1991 underrepresented the female prostitutes forcing the later studies to substitute the figure by including the expected number of partners for the female prostitutes. On the other hand, the number of partners for the heterosexual men was reduced but only based on the Colorado Springs estimates.
Men may overreport on having numerous sex partners, but many will not admit to having prostitutes as their partners. The underreporting on having prostitutes as partners for the male respondents increases the discrepancy on prostitution hence undermining the efforts made by surveys and increasing bias. It is therefore clear that men will want to be associated with having multiple sexual partners, but not many will admit to having prostitutes as their partners which affects the national surveys. The existing discrepancy on prostitution can also undermine the efforts of the government on gathering records on the trends of HIV infections and other sexually transmitted diseases. The intentional underrepresentation of prostitutes on the national surveys also limits clinical records on the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. The use of annual number of partners among the respondents undermines the lifelong prevalence of sexual partners for both heterosexual male and females.

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