Understanding Romance Fraud: Insights From Domestic Violence Research

Cross, C. ; Dragiewicz, M. ; Richards, K. (2018) — The British Journal of Criminology
Synopsis

Understanding Romance Fraud: Insights From Domestic Violence Research frames romance fraud as a form of manipulation that shares features with coercive control and financial abuse described in domestic violence scholarship. The topic encompasses online dating interactions, long-term relationships, and transactional fraud committed under the guise of romance. The overview highlights how fraudsters cultivate trust, create emotional dependency, and exploit vulnerabilities such as loneliness, financial stress, and social isolation. It situates victims’ experiences within broader patterns of abuse, emphasizing the ways betrayal and deception intersect with power dynamics, gendered expectations, and the technological platforms that shape offending and victimization. Key themes address offender techniques, risk indicators, and pathways to harm. The synopsis notes fraudulent relationships may involve staged crises, fabricated personal narratives, and strategic disclosure of affection to override skepticism. It considers the role of digital communication channels, social media, and remote interactions in enabling deception, as well as barriers to disclosure and help-seeking. The discussion reflects how romance fraud blends financial exploitation with emotional harm and control, echoing domestic violence literature on coercion, isolation, and dependency, while highlighting the unique features of fraud schemes such as impersonation, fake identities, and cross-border elements. Policy and practice implications focus on prevention, early warning, and victim-support responses. The catalog signals the importance of multi-agency collaboration, safe reporting mechanisms, and platform design changes to detect and disrupt fraudulent behavior. It underscores the value of survivor-centered approaches, education about red flags, and rigorous inquiry into the interface between online dating risks and domestic violence risk assessment. The overview concludes with notes on methodological considerations and directions for future research to refine understanding and inform interventions.
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