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Suicide is a major public health problem around the world, with an estimated 800,000 deaths from suicide each year. Research suggests that the ever-growing use of the Internet is contributing to and facilitating suicide. A thematic analysis was conducted on the final communications of three individuals aged between 18 and 21 to obtain an understanding of why people commit suicide online, how the Internet is involved, and how individuals who are online can influence a person's choice of life or death. The analysis found that all three suicides were encouraged and baited by their audience, often as the audience doubted the legitimacy of the events, which resulted in pride issues for the victim. The issue of excitement from the audience was also present in all three cases, suggesting that online communications feel more like entertainment than real life. Other themes include social disorders, hesitation, manipulation, and attention seeking behaviour related to low self-esteem. The finding showed that those who die online by suicide have moments of hesitation, which are relevant for suicide-prevention strategies. The limitations of this study in terms of generalisability are discussed, and recommendations for the future of public awareness projects and research are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Male rape literature is limited in the UK, with little public attention and limited research about prison officers' perceptions. The aim of the current study was to explore the attitudes and perceptions of prison officers in England and Wales. Two groups of participants were recruited: Group 1 included 24 retired prison officers; group 2 included 17 participants from the general population. A mixed method design was used to gather quantitative and qualitative data. Findings showed that prison officers did not accept societal myths on male rape, although some had negative attitudes towards male rape occurring in prison. Participants from the general population displayed similar results, demonstrating how being a prison officer does not affect beliefs and attitudes of male rape any more than the public. Support strategies for prisoners would further reduce the stigma of raped prisoners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concerns about sexual relationships between teachers and students have recently grown, with research limited about the perpetration of these crimes by female educators. In light of research gaps and theoretical controversy, this study aimed to investigate the influence of perpetrator gender on public perceptions and media portrayals of male and female sex offenders in the context of teacher-student sexual relationships. Utilizing a mixed methods design, 167 participants were presented with a vignette depicting either a male or female teacher convicted of statutory rape and completed either the attitudes towards male or female sex offender scales. Secondly, online newspaper portrayals of case studies were examined using qualitative content analysis. Findings revealed a significant difference in scores, whereby participants demonstrated more negative attitudes towards male sex offenders. The content analysis revealed three themes: accountability, perceptions of harm, and gender roles. Although portrayals of male teacher sex offenders were generally more negative, female abusers were described as equally damaging and deserving of punishment. It was concluded that gender bias that favors female perpetrators is infiltrated within public attitudes. Implications include the value of intervention and prevention strategies and improving victim reporting rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have issued public warnings regarding the increasing rates of scams targeting taxpayers and the high financial loss to governmental bodies and individuals around the globe these scams impact (HMRC 2020a; IRS 2021). However, despite this large impact on the economy, there is limited research on the working practices of the individuals behind these acts of fraud (Tzani-Pepelasi et al. in Journal of Forensic and Investigative Accounting, 2020). The present study utilised videos where Internet trolls engage with HMRC/IRS scammers, who attempted to delay scammers and protect victims, to investigate the stages involved with this scam using crime script analysis. The findings of this study potentially highlight that such fraudulent operations utilise scam scripts with amendable steps, according to the scammers' experience and the victims' gullibility. The limitations and implications of the study are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]