Low self-control and cybercrime: Exploring the utility of the general theory of crime beyond digital piracy

• We examine the effect of low self-control on cybercrime beyond digital piracy.
• An attitudinal measure of low self-control is used test our hypotheses.
• Multivariate analyses demonstrate support for the theory’s generality hypothesis.
• Low self-control is predictive of cybercrime in general.
• Low self-control is predictive of cybercrime beyond digital piracy.

While technological innovations over the last thirty years have markedly improved the ways in which people communicate and gather information, these advances have also led to computer crimes and related deviance becoming permanent fixtures in our society. In an effort to curtail internet offending, it is important for academics and practitioners alike to better understand why some individuals engage in cybercriminality. Criminologists have utilized several theories to investigate this type of deviance, including low self-control theory. However, the vast majority of this prior research has focused on a narrow scope of offending, namely digital piracy. The current study utilizes a sample of 488 undergraduate students to evaluate the theory’s generality hypothesis by examining the extent to which low self-control predicts online deviance in general and beyond digital piracy more specifically. Study results support the generality hypothesis in that low self-control is related to non-digital piracy online deviance. Specific findings, policy implications, and directions for future research are discussed.