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“They just say how stupid I was for being conned”. Cyberscams and acquired brain injury: A qualitative exploration of the lived experience of survivors and close others

Gould, Kate R. ; Carminati, Jao-Yue J. ; Ponsford, Jennie L. (2021) — Neuropsychological Rehabilitation

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DOI: 10.1080/09602011.2021.2016447 (opens in a new tab)

Type:   Journal Article
Country:   Australia
Tags:   Acquired Brain Injury, Australia, Close Others, Cognitive Impairment, Cyberscams, Family Support, Loneliness, Online Safety, Prevention, Qualitative Interviews, Romance Scams
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Synopsis

            
This Australian qualitative study interviewed seven cyberscam survivors with severe acquired brain injury and six close others for 45-87 minutes. Reflexive thematic analysis traced vulnerability, offender tactics, the scam and its discovery, impacts, responses from others, and desired interventions. Participants described financial disadvantage, loss of trust, shame, anger, grief, and emotional distress; cognitive impairment and isolation complicated recognition, while confusion, denial, disbelief, and shame obstructed intervention and help-seeking. Some romance scams lasted up to three years and moved from dating or social platforms to private messaging while avoiding video contact. The small severe-injury sample, overlapping accounts of one survivor, and self-reported impairment and loneliness limit claims specific to brain injury or other populations.

          

        
                  

            
Identified Gaps

            
Prior to this study, survivor-identified ABI-specific vulnerabilities, impacts on close others, and their perspectives on recovery were unknown. No effective cyberscam treatment guidelines or interventions had been identified. It remained unknown whether scams exacerbate post-ABI psychological challenges, whether ABI-related cognitive impairment independently increases romance-scam vulnerability beyond loneliness, and what constitutes effective support, reporting, and family intervention.

          

        
                  

            
Methods

            
Australian qualitative study using semi-structured individual interviews with seven cyberscam survivors with severe acquired brain injury (ABI) and six close others. Participants were recruited through ABI clinicians, support groups, networks, snowballing, and social media. Interviews (45–87 minutes) covered scam experiences, impacts, vulnerabilities, and desired help. Audio transcripts underwent inductive, constructivist reflexive thematic analysis using Braun and Clarke’s six phases; descriptive demographics were summarised in Excel.

          

        
                  

            
Limitations

            
The sample included two close others describing the same survivor’s scam exposure, so shared communication may have affected the range of accounts. All interviewed survivors had severe ABI, limiting generalisability to mild/moderate ABI or other impairment profiles. ABI-specific vulnerability claims are speculative because similar factors may occur in other high-risk groups. Cognitive impairment and loneliness were self-reported and require quantitative corroboration.

          

        
                  

            
Future Work

            
Develop and evaluate evidence-based, tailored interventions for cyberscam prevention and recovery in ABI. Study diverse ABI samples and compare them with general-population and other high-risk groups. Quantitatively corroborate self-reported cognitive and emotional risk factors, clarify whether ABI-related impairments add romance-scam risk beyond loneliness, and examine cognitive-executive predictors. Develop a susceptibility measure to support prevalence studies and intervention evaluation.

          

              

    
    

        
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