Human trafficking is a widely studied phenomenon. Comparing public perceptions of trafficking
to institutional (i.e. the academy, governmental and non-governmental organizations) perceptions gives
a richer understanding of the problem. The data for this study were collected in and around Chisinau,
Moldova in the summer of 2004. Public discourse provides a more intimate “portraiture” of the issue, but
the public also demonstrated a complex level of understanding of this social problem in this study.