Romance Scam Research Center

Mapping romance fraud research – a systematic review

Kassem, R. ; Carter, E. (2023) — Journal of Financial Crime
DOI: 10.1108/jfc-06-2023-0160
Synopsis

This article presents a systematic review of more than two decades of scholarly work on romance fraud with the aim of delivering a holistic understanding of the crime and identifying gaps in the literature. The review spans peer‑reviewed articles published from 2000 through 2023 and draws on multiple search engines and databases to locate relevant studies, selecting sources based on an examination of titles, keywords, abstracts, and core texts. The approach is designed to synthesize a wide range of academic contributions to show how romance fraud has been defined, studied, and interpreted over time, and to map the field in order to reveal areas that remain unclear or insufficiently explored. The synthesis identifies ten recurring thematic dimensions across the literature: how romance fraud is defined and the terminology used to name the phenomenon; the effects and harms experienced by victims; the characteristics and dynamics of both offenders and victims; the methods and techniques employed by criminals; the factors that render individuals susceptible to deception; the psychological underpinnings of those who perpetrate romance fraud; connections between romance fraud and other criminal activities; the practical and methodological challenges involved in investigating cases; strategies for preventing romance fraud and safeguarding victims; and the ways in which victims can be supported. From a practical standpoint, the findings suggest directions for policy and strategy aimed at addressing persistent underreporting and the narratives of shame that often accompany victim experiences. The study underscores that romance fraud is a serious crime with impacts extending beyond monetary loss and notes that this area remains under‑researched and lacking a cohesive synthesis. Accordingly, the work represents, to the extent possible, a novel, comprehensive attempt to integrate evidence across the academic spectrum to chart the breadth and depth of current romance fraud research and to identify substantive gaps in understanding this criminal phenomenon.
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