The gendered nature of fraud and white-collar crime: a study of offender strategies, victim reactions, and crime prevention potentials
Short description
This project studies differences between men and women as victims and offenders of fraud and white-collar crime, with a particular focus on the strategies used to select victims and commit crimes. The project is being conducted against a backdrop of limited studies on fraud and white-collar crime from a gender perspective and a significant knowledge gap in this area.
About the research
Research on fraud and white-collar crime has long been considered gender-blind. At the same time, it has long been documented that some of these crimes are almost exclusively committed by men, while others are committed equally by men and women, and are also common when women are suspected and prosecuted for crimes. Despite this, studies with a gender perspective are rare. The lack of knowledge is particularly striking when it comes to the strategies used to mislead victims and expose them to crime. However, there are strong indications that women and men are exposed to fraud and white-collar crime in different ways and that knowledge in this area may be important for successful crime prevention work.
Against this background, this research project aims to contribute knowledge about how gender-related aspects affect the interaction between victims and offenders in fraud and white-collar crime, with particular regard to how victims are selected and crimes are committed. The project is based on case studies of various types of fraud and white-collar crime. Empirical material from legal proceedings, supervisory and disciplinary cases, is analyzed using sequence and script analysis, as well as various theories on how the techniques used to select and deceive victims are based on perceptions of gender. The aim is to generate knowledge that can be used to prevent or interrupt a sequence of events that could otherwise lead to crime and victimization.