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Factors of susceptibility to online romance scam in Malaysia: unraveling the complex pathways

Purwaningrum, Evi Kurniasari ; Ho, Yi Ming ; Imawati, Diana ; Prihadi, Kususanto Ditto ; Talib, Mansor Abu (2024) — International Journal of Public Health Science (IJPHS)

DOI: 10.11591/ijphs.v13i4.23669
Type:   Journal Article
Country:   Indonesia
Tags:   victim experience, AI misuse, risk factors, measurement, online romance scam, susceptibility, loneliness, interpersonal mattering, relationship satisfaction, social media engagement, Malaysia, gullibility

Synopsis (AI-Generated)

A cross-sectional quantitative online survey recruited 380 Malaysian adults aged 18-67 who used the internet daily and had an active social-media account. Participants completed measures of relationship satisfaction, loneliness, interpersonal mattering, and a 15-item gullibility measure representing romance-scam susceptibility. Loneliness and low mattering formed a significant serial mediation pathway to susceptibility when social-media engagement was high. Low relationship satisfaction was associated with greater susceptibility to online romance scams, particularly at high social-media engagement. Self-reported measures may have introduced reporting bias or inaccurate assessment of relationship satisfaction, loneliness, mattering, and social-media engagement.

Identified Gaps (AI-Generated)

The study identifies a need to clarify temporal and causal relationships among relationship satisfaction, loneliness, mattering, social-media engagement, and romance-scam susceptibility. It also indicates limited integration of emotional needs and online engagement within existing routine activity and persuasion frameworks. The findings motivate evaluation of preventive education, monitoring, and supportive online-environment approaches.

Methods (AI-Generated)

A cross-sectional quantitative online survey recruited 380 Malaysian adults aged 18–67 who used the internet daily and had an active social-media account. Participants completed measures of relationship satisfaction, loneliness, interpersonal mattering, and a 15-item gullibility measure representing romance-scam susceptibility. The authors tested a moderated serial-mediation model using PROCESS Macro Model 92, 5,000 bootstrap resamples, and 95% confidence intervals.

Limitations (AI-Generated)

Self-reported measures may have introduced reporting bias or inaccurate assessment of relationship satisfaction, loneliness, mattering, and social-media engagement. The cross-sectional design prevents causal or temporal inference. In addition, the outcome is a self-reported gullibility-based susceptibility measure rather than documented romance-scam victimization, which limits conclusions about actual victim experiences.

Future Work (AI-Generated)

Use longitudinal designs to examine how relationship satisfaction, loneliness, mattering, social-media engagement, and susceptibility change over time. Develop and test targeted awareness and educational interventions for people experiencing relationship dissatisfaction, loneliness, or high social-media use. Examine safer platform environments, including improved monitoring and supportive online communities.

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AI-Generated Content Notice

The synopsis and research notes on this page were generated with AI from available publication information and, when available, the uploaded paper text. They may contain errors, omissions, or interpretation issues. Readers should follow the DOI or source link, review the original publication, and make their own judgment about the content.

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