# Operations Research and Analytics to Combat Human Trafficking: A Systematic Review of Academic Literature

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2103.16476 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2103.16476/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 30 Mar 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [IDTraffickers: An Authorship Attribution Dataset to link and connect Potential Human-Trafficking Operations on Text Escort Advertisements](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.05484/) (2023)
- [Computer Vision for Multimedia Geolocation in Human Trafficking Investigation: A Systematic Literature Review](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.15448/) (2024)
- [Plug to Place: Indoor Multimedia Geolocation from Electrical Sockets for Digital Investigation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.16620/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Human trafficking is a widespread and compound social, economic, and human rights issue occurring in every region of the world. While there have been an increasing number of anti-human trafficking works from the Operations Research and Analytics domains in recent years, no systematic review of this literature currently exists. We fill this gap by providing a systematic literature review that identifies and classifies the body of Operations Research and Analytics research related to the anti-human trafficking domain, thereby illustrating the collective impact of the field to date. We classify 142 studies to identify current trends in methodologies, theoretical approaches, data sources, trafficking contexts, target regions, victim-survivor demographics, and focus within the well-established 4Ps principles. Using these findings, we discuss the extent to which the current literature aligns with the global demographics of human trafficking and identify existing research gaps to propose an agenda for Operations Research and Analytics researchers.