Born in Beirut, Hakim grew up in the Middle East[3] and moved to the United Kingdom for boarding school at age 16, around 1964.
Her most recent books develop a theory of "erotic capital"[2][12][3] and its power in all social interaction, in the workplace, politics and in public life generally as well as in the invisible negotiations of private relationships.
[6] Catherine Hakim states that erotic capital is an asset in many social and economic settings such as media and politics.
[13] Hakim believes that erotic capital has gone unacknowledged for far too long and that the patriarchal society and moral constraints of conservative communities have caused the idea of beauty and attractiveness to stress the importance of personality, not giving enough credit to physique.
[15] She does not encourage a society based on solely erotic capital but rather states that it plays a subconscious role in daily life decisions, such as career offerings, enrichment opportunities, and social networking.
[17] Many groups such as feminists have actively rejected the idea of erotic capital by stating that the sex positive movement highlights the rights of women in only a manner that highlights advantages and ignores contradictory research that has shown that attractive women are less likely to receive a promotion.
[19] In 2017, Hakim was accused of misogyny after publishing an article which critics claim suggested women are to blame for sexual assault.