Self-reported computer criminal behavior: A psychological analysis

The current research study replicated a study by Rogers et al. (Rogers M, Smoak ND, Liu J. Self-reported criminal computer behavior: a big-5, moral choice and manipulative exploitive behavior analysis. Deviant Behavior 2006;27:1–24) and examined the psychological characteristics, moral choice, and exploitive manipulative behaviors of self-reported computer criminals and non-computer criminals. Seventy-seven students enrolled in an information technology program participated in the web-based study. The results of the study indicated that the only significant variable for predicting criminal/deviant computer behavior was extraversion. Those individuals self-reporting criminal computer behavior were significantly more introverted than those reporting no criminal/deviant computer behavior. This finding is contrary to the findings of the previous study. The current study confirmed that the four psychometric instruments were reliable for conducting research in the field of criminal/deviant computer behavior. The impact of the findings on the field of digital forensic investigations is discussed as well as possible reasons for the apparent contradiction between the two studies.