The gendering of fraud: an international investigation
| Pages | 811-837 |
| Date | 02 July 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-08-2017-0074 |
| Published date | 02 July 2018 |
| Author | Theresa Hilliard,Presha E. Neidermeyer |
| Subject Matter | Accounting & Finance,Financial risk/company failure,Financial crime |
The gendering of fraud: an
international investigation
Theresa Hilliard
Fort Lewis College, Durango, Colorado, USA, and
Presha E. Neidermeyer
Department of Accounting, West Virginia University, Morgantown,
West Virginia, USA
Abstract
Purpose –Changing workplace demographicsreflect a rising number of women in the traditionally male-
dominated field of business. The purposeof this study is to investigate how upwardly mobile women may
impact the commission and type of white-collar crime, contributing to the scarce literature on gender
distinctions in criminal behavior while comparing criminal trends globally. Women’s increased
representationin positions of power in business provides them with increasedfraud opportunities prompting
the authors to ask: in their areas of opportunity,do women and men commit the same types of white-collar
crime and at the same rates,and how does this phenomena vary globally?
Design/methodology/approach –Using a databasefrom the Institute for Fraud Prevention, 5,441 fraud
cases are examined from 93 nations for the annual periodsfrom 2002 until 2011. Ordinal logistic regression
methods are used to test for differencesin gendered criminal behavior by fraud offense type controlling for
age, position,education, compensation level and country context.
Findings –Internationally,results from the study indicate that female fraudsters are three times more likely
than male fraudsters to commission crimes of asset misappropriation in the workplace. Upon further
investigation, stratifying the databy geographical region, findings from the study demonstrate that female
fraudsters are more likely than male fraudsters to commit asset misappropriation in the following
geographicalregions: Africa (three times as likely), Asia (twiceas likely), Canada (three times as likely), China
(five times as likely), Europe (twice as likely), the Middle East (four times as likely), Oceania(four times as
likely),the United Kingdom (eight times as likely) and the United States of America (twice as likely).
Originality/value –Evidence from this study should be of importance to multinational enterprises,
auditors and fraud examiners, as asset misappropriation constitutes 87 per cent of all fraud cases globally.
Further,these findings prompt the need for researchers to developthis area of research.
Keywords Gender, International, White-collar crime, Fraud
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Opportunity theoryasserts that people seek opportunities either by legitimate or illegitimate
means to gain what they desire (Holtfreter, 2013). The ability to execute legitimate or
illegitimate activities is dependent upon opportunity structures (Benson et al.,2009). In the
context of white-collar crime, these structures are occupationally related (Felson, 2002).
Changing workforce demographicsand advancement to high-level corporate positions,both
within the USA and internationally, have provided women with accessto firm resources to
conduct business (legitimate activities) and also white-collar crime (illegitimate activities)
(Adler and Adler, 1975). In 2012, the global labor force participationrate[1] for females was
55 per cent (World Databank,2014). Female labor force participation rates were higher in the
following regions:Africa (65 per cent), Asia (63 per cent), Canada(65 per cent), Central/South
Gendering of
fraud
811
Journalof Financial Crime
Vol.25 No. 3, 2018
pp. 811-837
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1359-0790
DOI 10.1108/JFC-08-2017-0074
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/1359-0790.htm
America (59 per cent), the European Union (60 per cent), Oceania (65 per cent), the USA (66
per cent), Russia (65 per cent), Middle East (62 per cent), the UK (65 per cent), China (65
per cent) and India (65 per cent) (World Databank, 2014).Theattributes of professional paths
(Brantingham and Brantingham, 1993), education levels and geographic regions where the
gender gap (Hausmann et al., 2012) has narrowed may individually or in combination
provide the opportunity to commit white-collar crime. White-collar criminal activity has
historically been associatedwith males. A 2008 press release by the Association of Certified
Fraud Examiners (ACFE) claimed that, Fraud is a man’s world (ACFE, 2008). However,
increased access to resourcesalong with the diminishing global gender gap [2]have created
professional opportunity structures for females to commit white-collar criminal activities
which compels researchto investigate this phenomenon.
Despite increasing rates of women in business, opportunities by females to commit
white-collar crime may be neutralized by the intrinsic character of a woman. The gendered
theory of crime (Steffensmeier and Allan, 1995,1996) attributes gender differences in
criminal behavior to biological, motivational and circumstantial factors. In a 2013 study of
corporate crime by Steffensmeier, Schwartz and Roche, gender differences in terms of the
magnitude of damages and character involvement were explained by the gendered crime
framework. The authors contendthat women’s ethical orientations act as a natural deterrent
against involvementin white-collar criminal activities and corporatecorruption.
The objective of this study is to investigate gender distinctions of white-collar criminal
activity internationally, contributing to the literature on gender differences in criminal
behavior and providinga comparison of criminal-behavior trends globally. Thegender shift
and expansion of power positions provides women with increased fraud opportunities
prompting the authors to ask: In their areas of opportunity,do women and men[3] commit
the same types of white-collarcrime and at the same rates, and how does this vary based on
the global regional context?
We examine this research question in 11 geographic regions: Africa, Asia, Canada,
Central/South America, China,Europe, India, Oceania, Middle East, the UK and the USA[4]
Using a sample of 5,441 fraud casesreported by Certified Fraud Examiners (CFE) over a 10-
year period of time from 93 nations, we use ordinal logistic regression methods to test the
likelihood of women committing white-collar crimes when controlling for age, position,
compensation levels and education. Specifically, we examine gender association with
specific crimes committedwithin the hierarchy of white-collar crime[5].
The results from our study suggest that when comparing white-collar criminals of the
same age, position,compensation and education levels, women are threetimes (OR[6] = 3.16)
as likely than men to engage in crimes of asset misappropriation. More specifically, if a
company has been victimized by crimes of asset misappropriation, it is three times more
likely that the offender is a female. Asset misappropriation represents the most prevalent
white-collar crime, constituting87 per cent of all frauds internationally (ACFE, 2012). Upon
investigation of specific geographic regions, Africa (OR
3
= 2.8), Asia (OR
3
= 2.01), Canada
(OR
3
= 3.26), China (OR
3
= 4.8), the European Union (OR
3
= 2.18), Middle East (OR
3
= 3.83),
Oceania (OR
3
= 4.11), UK (OR
3
= 8.05) and the USA (OR
3
= 2.2) exhibited statistical
significance relatedto gender distinctions of white-collar criminal activities.
This paper contributesto the literature by examining gender distinctions associated with
the specific types of white-collar crimein an international setting.Findings from the present
study contribute to an underserved area in fraud literature. This study should serve as a
guide for future research examining gender distinctions at the intersection of opportunity
and gendered theories of criminal activities. Results from this study also have implications
for the practice in terms of detectionand prevention. Prevention involves the development of
JFC
25,3
812
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