Social construction of online sex work: a social welfare analysis of MiChat-mediated sexual labor in Jayapura, Indonesia

This study aims to analyze how online sex work practices through the MiChat application in Jayapura City are socially constructed and related to multidimensional wellbeing. The study employed a qualitative approach with in-depth interviews with three informants purposively selected based on varying socioeconomic backgrounds. Data analysis was conducted thematically, drawing on Berger and Luckmann's social construction theory, encompassing the processes of externalization, objectivation, and internalization. The results indicate that online sex work is not a homogeneous phenomenon, but rather a practice negotiated within the context of structural constraints, such as economic pressure, social stigma, and weak institutional support. This practice serves as a short-term livelihood strategy, but simultaneously reproduces vulnerabilities in economic, social, psychological, spiritual, and health dimensions. Furthermore, the findings suggest that individuals involved are more accurately understood as victim-survivors actively navigating choices within unequal conditions. This study contributes by integrating social construction and multidimensional wellbeing perspectives to understand digital-based informal work in peripheral urban contexts. Policy implications emphasize the importance of inclusive and gender-sensitive structural-based interventions.