The charade of discreetness: Exploring the paradoxical lifestyles of romance fraudsters

IF 0.8 4区心理学 Q4 CRIMINOLOGY & PENOLOGY

Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling Pub Date : 2024-05-24 DOI:10.1002/jip.1637

Jonathan Barnor

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

This study examined mechanisms that influence romance fraud perpetrators' public display of affluence, an aspect of romance fraud research that has received little attention in the literature. The study collected data through semi-structured interviews with eight offenders from two Ghanaian cybercrime hotbeds and three law enforcement officials, using a qualitative research approach based on the critical realist paradigm. Data analysis was performed using thematic analysis, which revealed that the social environment, peer influence, links with high-net-worth individuals (upper structure clientelism), the involvement of social media and collaboration with some corrupt state officials all had a substantial influence on cybercriminals' public display of wealth. Furthermore, upper structure clientelism shows systemic flaws in financial institutions that must be addressed in order to reduce online romance fraud. The significance of social media in fostering public displays of wealth emphasises the importance of education and awareness initiatives as preventative measures. To effectively prevent online romance fraud, law enforcement should prioritise interagency cooperation and transparency among governmental institutions.

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谨慎的假象探索爱情骗子自相矛盾的生活方式

本研究探讨了影响恋爱欺诈者公开展示富裕程度的机制，这是恋爱欺诈研究中一个很少受到文献关注的方面。研究采用基于批判现实主义范式的定性研究方法，通过对来自加纳两个网络犯罪温床的八名犯罪者和三名执法人员进行半结构化访谈收集数据。数据分析采用了主题分析法，结果显示，社会环境、同侪影响、与高净值个人的联系（上层建筑贿赂主义）、社交媒体的参与以及与一些腐败的国家官员的合作都对网络犯罪分子公开炫富产生了重大影响。此外，上层结构 "贿赂主义 "显示了金融机构的系统性缺陷，必须加以解决，以减少网恋欺诈。社交媒体在促进公开炫富方面的重要作用强调了教育和宣传活动作为预防措施的重要性。为有效预防网恋欺诈，执法部门应优先考虑机构间合作和政府机构间的透明度。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling Multiple-

CiteScore

2.20

自引率

10.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： The Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling (JIP-OP) is an international journal of behavioural science contributions to criminal and civil investigations, for researchers and practitioners, also exploring the legal and jurisprudential implications of psychological and related aspects of all forms of investigation. Investigative Psychology is rapidly developing worldwide. It is a newly established, interdisciplinary area of research and application, concerned with the systematic, scientific examination of all those aspects of psychology and the related behavioural and social sciences that may be relevant to criminal.