Sexy substances and the substance of sex: Findings from an ethnographic study in Ibiza, Spain

Purpose
This article offers an ethnographic account of substances and sex, and how they are interrelated, in the context of one holiday destination popular among British youth. We write this paper because current research on British youth abroad and their use of substances is based almost exclusively on survey methods. Similarly, the same research works do not explore in sufficient detail sexual relations outside those between British tourists.
Design/Methodology
We base this article on 38 focus groups, observations and informal conversations undertaken in San Antonio, Ibiza over the summers of 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Findings
Here we complement current knowledge on sex and substances abroad by discussing the role of Promotion Representatives (PRs), strippers and prostitutes and the use of both drugs and alcohol, emphasising how substances feature in the promotion of sex. We adopt Bakhtin’s concept of the ‘carnivalesque’ (1984) to understand these behaviours.
Originality/Value
As far as we can see, current research is almost exclusively based on sex between tourists and sexual encounters with other social players in holiday resorts has been largely neglected.

Citation:
Briggs, D., Tutenges, S., Armitage , R. & Panchev, D. (2011), 'Sexy substances and the substance of sex: Findings from an ethnographic study in Ibiza, Spain', Drugs and Alcohol Today, vol 11(4), pp. 173-187, DOI:10.1108/17459261111194116..