| Abstract [eng] |
Čekavičius, R. (2026). The role of perceived anonymity and psychopathy in young adults’ criminal behavior online. Master Thesis. Vilnius University. – 60 p. Introduction. In today’s context of rapid technological development, criminal behavior online is becoming an increasingly pressing global problem. Such behavior is particularly prevalent among adolescents and young adults (Davidson et al., 2022; Kranenbarg et al, 2022). The sense of anonymity in the digital space is linked to, and might even predict, a person’s involvement in illegal activities. Meanwhile, traits of psychopathy are associated with antisocial and criminal behavior not only in the physical, but also in the digital world, such as the internet. This study aims to determine how young adults’ perceived anonymity and psychopathic traits are related to criminal behavior in the digital space. Methodology. The study included young adults (N = 134) aged 19–29 (M = 24.0; SD = 2.52) of whom 93 were women (69.4%) and 41 were men (30.6%). The study utilized the Perceived Anonymity Scale (Hite et al., 2014), the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (Patrick, 2009), and the Cyber Crime Index (Rightley et al., 2023) which was adapted for the current sample. Results. Perceived anonymity and psychopathy among young adults are not associated with criminal behavior in cyberspace. Psychopathy and technical competency among young adult men are positively associated with cybercrime. Young men exhibit higher levels of psychopathic traits and commit cybercrimes more frequently than young women. Perceived anonymity does not moderate the relationship between psychopathy and cybercrime. Gender, when controlling for other study variables, explains 13.6% of the variance in cybercrime data within the young adult sample. Keywords: perceived anonymity, psychopathy, cybercrime, young adults. |
