Bridgewater State University Virtual Commons - Bridgewater State University Master’s Theses and Projects College of Graduate Studies 7-2015 Empirical Assessment of Lifestyle-Routine Activity and Social Learning Theory on Cybercrime Offending Elizabeth Phillips Follow this and additional works at: http://vc.bridgew.edu/theses Part of the Criminology Commons, and the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons Recommended Citation Phillips, Elizabeth. (2015). Empirical Assessment of Lifestyle-Routine Activity and Social Learning Theory on Cybercrime Offending. In BSU Master’s Theses and Projects. Item 25. Available at http://vc.bridgew.edu/theses/25 Copyright © 2015 Elizabeth Phillips This item is available as part of Virtual Commons, the open-access institutional repository of Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Empirical Assessment of Lifestyle-Routine Activity and Social Learning Theory on Cybercrime Offending A THESIS Presented to the Department of Criminal Justice Bridgewater State University In Partial Fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Master of Criminal Justice By Elizabeth Phillips M.S., 2015, Bridgewater State University July 2015 Empirical Assessment of Lifestyle-Routine Activity and Social Learning Theory on Cybercrime Offending Thesis Presented By Elizabeth Phillips Content and style approved by: Dr. Kyung-shick Choi (Chairperson of Thesis Committee) Dr. Khadija Monk (Member) Dr. Mitch Librett (Member) Phillips 1 Abstract The Internet and its overwhelming possibilities and applications have changed the way individuals carry out many routine activities such as going to work or school, or socializing. Social networking sites such as Facebook are ideal settings for interacting with others, and unfortunately, are also ideal settings for committing cybercrimes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the occurrence of online offending against individuals, specifically harassment, stalking, impersonation, and sexting. Self-report surveys collected from a sample of 274 college students were examined using a negative binomial statistical analysis to determine possible relationships between risky online and offline lifestyles as well as social learning factors and the perpetration of cybercrime. The results indicate moderate support for the application of lifestyle- routine activity theory and social learning theory to cybercrime offending. Possible policy implications as well as suggestions for future research are discussed. Phillips 2 Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank my committee Chair, Dr. Kyung-shick Choi. I am tremendously grateful for his assistance in helping me to complete this thesis and for his mentorship throughout my graduate career. Thank you for your unwavering support, thank you for pushing me to do my best, and most importantly, thank you for helping me to believe in myself. Secondly, I would like to thank my committee members Dr. Khadija Monk and Dr. Mitch Librett for all of their advice and assistance. Dr. Monk, thank you for your persistent conviction and dedication to my success. Dr. Librett, thank you for your positive attitude and genuine good will. Thank you both for the lessons you have taught me inside and outside of the classroom. Finally, I would like to thank the friends and family members who have always offered me so much love and support. You are my inspiration, my motivation, my everything. Thank you. Phillips 3 Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………2 Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………………..3 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..5 Literature Review………………………………………………………………………………….7 Theoretical Framework…………………………………………………………………....7 Theoretical Application to Cybercrime………………………………………………….13 Research Design & Methodology……………………………………………………………..…18 Sample……………………………………………………………………………………19 Independent Variables…………………………………………………………………...20 Dependent Variables……………………………………………………………………..24 Results……………………………………………………………………………………………26 Discussion………………………………………………………………………………………..31 Significance of Results…………………………………………………………………..31 Policy Implications………………………………………………………………………36 Limitations and Future Research………………………………………………………...41 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….43 References………………………………………………………………………………………..45 Appendices…………………………………………………………………………………….....48 Phillips 4 Introduction The Internet, social networking sites, and online communication have changed the way individuals communicate and interact. This includes the occurrence of cybercrime. For example, many people routinely release personal information and pictures online which increases their vulnerability to crimes such as cyber stalking or identity theft. The ease by which offenders can access information online is a reason for concern and calls for more research to be done on the subject of cybercrime offending. The purpose of this study is to examine possible factors that increase the likelihood of cybercrime offending, specifically harassment, stalking, impersonation, and sexting, using a secondary data analysis research design. Cohen, Kluegel, and Land’s (1981) lifestyle-routine activity theory, and Aker’s (1994) social learning theory will be applied to the examination and analysis of surveys completed by a sample of college students at a Massachusetts university. Although the study of cybercrime is in its early stages, it is a phenomenon that can have devastating consequences. A 2002 study by Spitzberg and Hoobler found that 31% of undergraduae student participants experienced some kind of personal online victimization. In a similar study performed in 2011, 42% of social network uses reported experiencing some form of interpersonal victimization on-line (Henson et al., 2011). Cybercrimes, unlike physical crimes, have the potential to affect virtually anyone who uses the Internet. In our modern society which relies so heavily on technology, this means that the vast majority of our population is at risk. Additionally, investigating and prosecuting cybercriminals can be difficult. Often, because the crime takes place over the Internet instead of in a physical location, there is no clear jurisdiction. This means that law enforcement authorities Phillips 5 and policy makers are unclear as to who is responsible for enforcing penalties and what those penalties should be. There are also a variety of definitions and categorizations of cybercrimes that make the challenges of both researching and prosecuting them more difficult. For example, researchers have begun to make a distinction between ‘cybercrime’ and ‘computer crime’. Cybercrimes are characterized as crimes that have existed before the internet, but have taken on a new life in cyberspace, such as theft, harassment, stalking and pornography. In contrast, computer crimes are crimes that have emerged with the creation of the internet and would not be possible to commit without it, such as hacking and spreading viruses. The four crimes being investigated in the current study are categorized as cybercrimes, rather than computer crimes, and include cyber harassment, cyber stalking, cyber impersonation, and sexting. Cyber harassment consists of verbally harassing someone online, including spreading rumors or threatening someone. Cyber stalking is simply stalking someone in the electronic format. This may include frequently visiting or checking someone’s social networking site, and the victim may be unaware that they are being stalked. Cyber impersonation, sometimes referred to as the popular-culture term ‘catfishing’, involves an individual impersonating another online. The individual may use another’s personal information and photographs in order to pose as someone they are not while online. Finally, sexting refers to the sharing of sexually explicit photos or videos over the internet. Although there are other cybercrimes worth investigating, such as cyberbullying, cyber sexual harassment/violence, and pornography, only the four described here will be analyzed within the current study. As the scientific community begins to explore cybercrime, it will be helpful to better understand the possible factors that increase the likelihood of cybercrime offending. The current Phillips 6 study analyzes a secondary data set in order to further the understanding of cybercrime offending. The purpose of the study is to determine whether risky online lifestyles and routine activities, as well as social learning factors conducive to crime, increase the likelihood of committing cybercrime against individuals. Based on existing literature, it is hypothesized that those who do not conceal their identity online, who engage in risky online and offline behaviors, who do not utilize digital guardianship and security management, who differentially associate with deviant peers online, and who hold definitions favorable to crime, will be more likely to commit the cybercrime offences of cyber harassment, stalking, impersonation, and sexting. The study utilizes negative binomial statistical analysis and theoretical application to offer suggestions for future research and possible policy implications. Literature Review Theoretical Framework Lifestyle and Routine Activity Theory (LRAT) is an integrated theoretical approach that has been widely used to study criminal victimization (Miethe & Meier, 1994; Osgood et al., 1996; Schreck, Wright, & Miller, 2002; Sampson & Wooldridge, 1987; Svensson & Pauwels, 2010). Borrowing concepts from both lifestyle-exposure (Hindelang, Gottfredson, & Garofalo, 1978)