scholarly journals Characteristics and Behaviors of Anonymous Users of Dark Web Platforms Suspected of Child Sexual Offenses

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Woodhams ◽  
Juliane A. Kloess ◽  
Brendan Jose ◽  
Catherine E. Hamilton-Giachritsis
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
International Law ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sexual Offenses ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Offending Behavior ◽  
And Behaviors ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Dark Web

International law enforcement have noted a rise in the use of the Dark Web to facilitate and commit sexual offenses against children, both prior to and since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study presented here therefore aimed to investigate the characteristics and behaviors of anonymous users of Dark Web platforms who were suspected of engaging in the sexual abuse of children. Naturally-occurring data on 53 anonymous suspects, who were active on the Dark Web and had come to police attention in the United Kingdom (UK), were sampled. Analysis of the data yielded 462 features that could be coded reliably. Analysis of these features provided novel insights into suspects’ characteristics, their motivations for using the Dark Web, the nature of the offending behavior they reported engaging in, their technical and security precautions, sexual interests, and the content of their interactions with one another. Findings are discussed in relation to theoretical and practical implications, as well as directions for future research.

Consumers' preferences for intrinsic and extrinsic product attributes of plant-based eggs: an exploratory study in the United Kingdom and Italy

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnese Rondoni ◽  
Elena Millan ◽  
Daniele Asioli
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Product Attributes ◽  
Product Failure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Analysis Of Results ◽  
Method Of Production ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposePlant-based eggs have recently been developed to provide consumers with a healthier, animal-friendlier and more sustainable alternative to conventional eggs. The purpose of this paper is to investigate intrinsic and extrinsic attribute preferences for three prototypes of plant-based egg, namely the liquid, powder and egg-shaped.Design/methodology/approachNine focus groups in the United Kingdom and nine in Italy were conducted, with a total of 180 participants. A thematic analysis of results was conducted.FindingsIn terms of intrinsic product attributes, consumers' preferences for colour, shape, taste, ingredients, nutrients, method of production and shelf-life for plant-based eggs were revealed. Regarding the extrinsic attributes, preferences for price, packaging, country of origin and product naming emerged. Similarities and differences between consumers from the two countries are also discussed. Differences in preferences also emerged between vegan and non-vegan consumers.Research limitations/implicationsThis study adds to the existing knowledge on consumers' preferences for new plant-based food alternatives and identifies future quantitative approaches based on qualitative findings.Practical implicationsResults from this study can assist plant-based egg manufacturers in improving their products in line with consumers' expectations, which may help reducing risk of product failure.Originality/valueThis study is the first to investigate consumers' preferences, expectations and needs for new food products like plant-based eggs and provides information that can be practically applied by manufacturers, as well as suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Sex Offenses Perpetrated Against Older Adults: A Multivariate Analysis of Crime Scene Behaviors

2020 ◽  
pp. 088626052092863
Author(s):  
Louise Almond ◽  
Martha Sainsbury ◽  
Michelle McManus
Keyword(s):  
Sexually Abused ◽  
Sexual Offending ◽  
Crime Scene ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Law Enforcement Agencies ◽  
Female Victims ◽  
Sexual Offenses ◽  
Offending Behavior ◽  
The Relationship

The aim of this study was to thematically explore the relationship between crime scene behaviors and background characteristics of offenders who commit sexual offenses against female victims aged 60 years or more. Research and understanding of offense behaviors in this area is extremely limited; therefore, the study sought to provide a preliminary understanding and multivariate model of offense behaviors in cases where older female adults were sexually abused. Twenty-seven crime scene behaviors from 143 rape or attempted rape cases of an older adult victim were analyzed; frequency data were computed to provide base rate information, and Smallest Space Analysis provided a visual representation of the co-occurrence of crime scene behaviors. Three distinct dominant themes were identified, in which 56% of offenses displayed themes of Involvement (22%), Control (17%), and Hostility (16%). The relationship between each dominant theme and selected background characteristics was then analyzed. For example, offenders displaying an Involvement theme were found to be significantly less likely to have prior convictions. Significance was also found in the relationship between dominant themes and a “theft and kindred offence other” preconviction background characteristic. The findings demonstrate offending behavior can be separated into three distinct themes, providing an explanation of offender subtypes and supporting previous models found in other types of sexual offending. Applications for law enforcement agencies regarding identified themes and links with likely offender background characteristics are highlighted. Limitations and future research avenues are discussed.

Entrepreneurial uncertainty in context: an ethnomethodological perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Betsy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Conversation Analysis ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Workplace Interactions ◽  
Entrepreneurial Teams ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Routine Work ◽  
Interaction Order ◽  
Advance Research ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis paper seeks to advance research into entrepreneurial uncertainty. Few researchers have attended to the endogenous means by which entrepreneurial teams account for uncertainty in context. This article begins to unpack the concept of uncertainty as an entrepreneurs’ phenomenon by investigating entrepreneurial teams’ situated ways of verbally attending to and accounting for uncertainty in their routine work.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws on the ethnomethodological traditions of Conversation Analysis and interaction order to analyze naturally occurring interactions that have been recorded by entrepreneurial teams in context. It considers entrepreneurial uncertainty as a matter that teammates draw upon and orient to in the process of their naturally occurring workplace interactions.FindingsFirst, it suggests that the endogenous means by which entrepreneurs recognize, account for, and respond to uncertainties is identifiable in a team’s naturally occurring conversations. It transforms entrepreneurial uncertainty as a matter of cognition into a matter of practice that is observable in the structure and order of authentic interaction. Second, it reveals the “epistemic engine” that entrepreneurial teams use to demonstrate greater or lesser levels of knowing and to move to closure that is not marked by the full elimination of uncertainties but by the establishment of a shared sense of not knowing.Practical implicationsBy adhering to the detailed interactional focus of Conversation Analysis, this article emphasizes the value that the structure and order of entrepreneurial conversations can offer to research on entrepreneurship as practice. It points to future research on matters of effectuation and expertise that will be relevant to scholars and educators of entrepreneurship. It also helps to bridge the gap between scholarly research and entrepreneurial work as experienced by practitioners.Originality/valueThis article shows the mundane verbal means by which entrepreneurs account for uncertainties in their everyday work. It reframes entrepreneurial uncertainty, transforming it from a matter of cognition to an accomplishment of practice. It suggests that entrepreneurial uncertainty is a practical matter that is recognized by and accounted for in the conversations of entrepreneurial teams in context.

scholarly journals Offense Processes of Online Sexual Grooming and Abuse of Children Via Internet Communication Platforms

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliane A. Kloess ◽  
Catherine E. Hamilton-Giachritsis ◽  
Anthony R. Beech
Keyword(s):  
Case Series ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Direct Approach ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Internet Communication ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications

The aim of the present study was to provide an inclusive and realistic account of the offense processes of naturally occurring, sexually exploitative interactions between offenders and victims that took place via Internet communication platforms, and develop an offense process diagram of online sexual grooming and abuse. Five case series, comprising 29 transcripts of 22 interactions, were analyzed using the qualitative approach of thematic analysis. Police reports were reviewed for descriptive and case-specific information. The five offenders were men aged between 27 and 52 years ( M = 33.6, SD = 5.6), and the number of children they communicated with ranged from one to 12 ( M = 4.6, SD = 4.5). Victims were aged between 11 and 15 ( M = 13.0, SD = 1.2), and were both female ( n = 17) and male ( n = 6). Findings revealed that offenders employed either an indirect or a direct approach to conversations with victims and initiating contact with them. The approach offenders employed was also reflected in the types of strategies they used. Only two offenders were found to engage in aspects of sexual grooming as part of an indirect approach; the majority of the interactions by the other three offenders, that lacked features of sexual grooming altogether, were found to be of a direct approach. These findings are discussed in relation to current issues surrounding terminology and definition of sexual grooming, as well as theoretical and practical implications, concluding with suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals The Challenges of Identifying and Classifying Child Sexual Abuse Material

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliane A. Kloess ◽  
Jessica Woodhams ◽  
Helen Whittle ◽  
Tim Grant ◽  
Catherine E. Hamilton-Giachritsis
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Interrater Reliability ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Offending Behavior ◽  
Assessment And Treatment ◽  
Experienced Researcher

The aim of the present study was to (a) assess the reliability with which indecent images of children (IIOC) are classified as being of an indecent versus nonindecent nature, and (b) examine in detail the decision-making process engaged in by law enforcement personnel who undertake the difficult task of identifying and classifying IIOC as per the current legislative offense categories. One experienced researcher and four employees from a police force in the United Kingdom coded an extensive amount of IIOC ( n = 1,212-2,233) to determine if they (a) were deemed to be of an indecent nature, and (b) depicted a child. Interrater reliability analyses revealed both considerable agreement and disagreement across coders, which were followed up with two focus groups involving the four employees. The first entailed a general discussion of the aspects that made such material more or less difficult to identify; the second focused around images where there had been either agreement ( n = 20) or disagreement ( n = 36) across coders that the images were of an indecent nature. Using thematic analysis, a number of factors apparent within IIOC were revealed to make the determination of youthfulness and indecency significantly more challenging for coders, with most relating to the developmental stage of the victim and the ambiguity of the context of an image. Findings are discussed in light of their implications for the identification of victims of ongoing sexual exploitation/abuse, the assessment and treatment of individuals in possession of IIOC, as well as the practice of policing and sentencing this type of offending behavior.

Selling empire: a historical perspective on selling foreign products in domestic markets

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Allen Moore
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Home Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Domestic Markets ◽  
Foreign Products ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
British Home ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how the Empire Marketing Board used enhanced marketing tools and approaches to reduce British consumer bias against foreign products. The paper asks: “How have marketers historically increased foreign exports to domestic markets?” Design/methodology/approach The paper comprises an historical account of the Empire Marketing Board during the 1920s and 1930s. Applying a qualitative approach, it relies on archival materials gathered by the author in the United Kingdom – including official and personal papers; newspaper and poster advertisements of the Board; and existing scholarship for its information. Findings The Board used three strategies in its advertisements: collaboration, showing how domestic and overseas markets were linked in mutually beneficial ways; globalization, emphasizing the expansive “home” market and the benefits of removing borders; and producer profiles, narrating the producers of imperial products to create the desire to benefit producers. Practical implications The strategies of the Board are not dissimilar to fair trade campaigns used by the private sector today, notably in coffee. Looking forward, these approaches could be valid ways for companies today to reduce consumer bias against foreign goods, and this paper hopes to be a stepping-stone for future research. Originality/value Analyzing under-used archival sources, the paper illuminates the complex processes and ideologies embedded within the Board’s campaigns. The Empire Marketing Board played an important role in the interwar British consumer conceptualization of the relationship between Britain and her Empire, construction of a global British “home” market and the familiarization of imperial producers.

A preliminary study of autism and cybercrime in the context of international law enforcement

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ledingham ◽  
Richard Mills
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
International Law ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Law Enforcement Agencies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Spectrum Disorders ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the association of cybercrime, autistic spectrum conditions and international law enforcement, the past decade having seen a significant growth in reported cybercrimes involving autistic individuals. Design/methodology/approach – Interest in the profile of autism and cybercrime and the pathways whereby such offences are committed is shared by key law-enforcement agencies worldwide. This was explored by literature review and survey. Findings – The authors identified a presence of persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders but no empirical evidence to suggest a prevalence or an over representation of autistic individuals committing cybercrime offences. At present profiling, pathways, and recording is under developed. Research limitations/implications – Paucity of literature on cybercrime and autism. Awareness of autism within law-enforcement agencies and the absence of key diagnostic and other data from the cross-section of agencies surveyed. Practical implications – Improve detection, diversion, profiling, risk and pathways into cybercrime. Social implications – Better prediction of risk of cybercrime and improved responses. Originality/value – Original paper believed to be the first to look at cybercrime and ASD in the context of international law enforcement.

scholarly journals The Sexual Values and Behaviors Discrepancy Model

2019 ◽  
pp. 69-79
Author(s):  
Zachary D. Bloom ◽  
Ashley J. Blount ◽  
Dalena L. Dillman Taylor ◽  
Galina Lipkin
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Positive Approach ◽  
Sexual Values ◽  
Discrepancy Model ◽  
Sexual Beliefs ◽  
And Behaviors ◽  
Sex Positive ◽  
Practical Implications

Founded in theory and empirical research, we developed the Sexual Values and Behaviors Discrepancy Model (SVBDM) as reflective model for counselors to follow in order to assist their clients in safely reducing discrepancies between their ideal and practiced sexual beliefs, values, and behaviors. The SVBDM is a wellness-informed and sex-positive approach to working with clients and is comprised of three steps: Identification and Operationalization of Potential Sexual Issues, Counselor’s Self-Assessment, and Reducing Discrepancies and Maintaining Safety. We note practical implications and potential limitations of this model as well as recommendations for future research.

Making sure crime does not pay

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 555-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanya Gibbs
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Economic Security ◽  
Economic Crime ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Government ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis paper aims to analyse a new piece of Dubai legislation, Dubai Law No. (4) of 2016: The Dubai Economic Security Centre (DESC) Law, in respect of its role and impact on economic crime mitigation in the emirate and in the country as a whole.Design/methodology/approachThe jurisdiction’s various risks and vulnerabilities were examined to determine weaknesses and gaps in the current legislative and regulatory framework.FindingsThe findings highlight that despite numerous legislative efforts targeting economic crime, bringing economic criminals to justice has remained an issue in Dubai. Creation of the Dubai Economic Security Centre (DESC) may mark a significant change in that emirate’s approach to tackling this issue.Research limitations/implicationsThough the DESC itself is (as of this writing) still in a formative state, it is clearly intended to be a comprehensive response to expedite and streamline investigative processes and mitigate the multi-jurisdictional problems with which law enforcement has hitherto contended.Practical implicationsThe DESC is also intended to serve not only as an informational clearinghouse but also as an organisational entity with significant roles in law enforcement and even legislation.Social implicationsRegardless of its ambitious and promising results, the effectiveness of its organisational structure and performance is yet to be determined.Originality/valueThis research can be beneficial for the government officials in charge of establishment and launch of the DESC, as well as for future research as it points to its potential ambiguities and misinterpretations.

scholarly journals Detecting a Decline in Serial Homicide: Have We Banished the Devil from the Details?

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enzo Yaksic ◽  
Clare Allely ◽  
Raneesha De Silva ◽  
Melissa Smith-Inglis ◽  
Daniel Konikoff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Cultural Norms ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Enforcement Action ◽  
Missing Persons ◽  
Serial Homicide ◽  
Offending Behavior ◽  
Serial Killing ◽  
The Devil

Objectives: The likelihood that serial murderers are responsible for most unresolved homicides and missing persons was examined by investigating the accounting of the phenomenon in the context of a declining prevalence. Methods: A mixed methods approach was used, consisting of a review of a sample of unresolved homicides, a comparative analysis of the frequency of known serial homicide series and unresolved serial homicide series, and semi-structured interviews of experts.Results: The past decade contained almost half the cases (13%) that existed at the 1980s peak of serial homicide (27%). Only 282 (1.3%) strangled females made up the 22,444 unresolved homicides reviewed. Most expert respondents thought it unreasonable that any meaningful proportion of missing persons cases are victims of serial homicide. Conclusions: Technology, shifts in offending behavior, proactive law enforcement action, and vigilance of society have transformed serial killing and aids in viewing offenders as people impacted by societal shifts and cultural norms. The absence of narrative details inhibited some aspects of the review. An exhaustive list of known unresolved serial homicide series remained elusive as some missing persons are never reported. Future research should incorporate those intending to murder serially, but whose efforts were stalled by arrest, imprisonment, or death.

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