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  <front>
    <journal-meta>
      <journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">JCARM</journal-id>
      <journal-title-group>
        <journal-title>Journal of Contemporary Academic Research and Methodologies</journal-title>
        <abbrev-journal-title>JCARM</abbrev-journal-title>
      </journal-title-group>
            <issn pub-type="epub">3139-7247</issn>
            <publisher>
        <publisher-name>Ivory and Finch Publishers</publisher-name>
      </publisher>
    </journal-meta>

    <article-meta>
      <article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.5281/zenodo.21300510</article-id>
      <article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">JCARM_JUN_26_018</article-id>

      <article-categories>
        <subj-group subj-group-type="heading">
          <subject>Systematic Review</subject>
        </subj-group>
      </article-categories>

      <title-group>
        <article-title>The Dark Psychology of Bank Fraud: A Psychopathology Perspective</article-title>
      </title-group>

      <contrib-group>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name>
                        <surname>A. Kenku (Ph.D)</surname>
            <given-names>Akeem</given-names>
          </name>
                    <aff>Department of Psychology, Nasarawa State University, Keffi.</aff>
          <email>akeemkenku@nsuk.edu.ng</email>
        </contrib>
                                          <contrib contrib-type="author">
              <name>
                                <surname>James Doka </surname>
                <given-names>Jerry</given-names>
              </name>
                                          <aff>Department of Psychology, Nasarawa State University, Keffi.</aff>
                          </contrib>
                                              <contrib contrib-type="author">
              <name>
                                <surname>Ulea Salihu (Ph.D)</surname>
                <given-names>Yunana</given-names>
              </name>
                                          <aff>Department of Psychology, Nasarawa State University, Keffi.</aff>
                          </contrib>
                                    </contrib-group>

            <pub-date pub-type="epub">
        <day>10</day>
        <month>07</month>
        <year>2026</year>
      </pub-date>
      <volume>1</volume>
      <issue>5</issue>
      
      
            <self-uri xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21300510"/>
      
      <abstract>
        <p>Bank fraud remains a pervasive issue in financial institutions, with perpetrators often displaying distinct psychological traits and cognitive distortions that enable deceptive practices. This review paper examines the dark psychology of bank fraud, focusing on the psychopathological characteristics of fraud perpetrators. Using a psychopathological perspective, the study explores personality disorders, cognitive biases, and emotional detachment as core factors influencing fraudulent behaviour. The paper also investigates how organizational culture, workplace dynamics, and systemic loopholes contribute to financial fraud. A qualitative research approach is employed, utilizing secondary data sources such as peer-reviewed journals, books, financial crime reports, forensic psychology studies, and regulatory documents from institutions.  Thematic content analysis is used to identify recurring psychological and organizational patterns associated with bank fraud. Findings reveal that many fraud perpetrators exhibit antisocial tendencies, impulsivity, and a lack of moral restraint, allowing them to manipulate financial systems. Additionally, toxic workplace cultures, weak ethical climates, and inadequate internal controls create enabling environments for fraud to thrive. The study emphasizes the need for financial institutions to implement stricter ethical oversight, psychological risk assessments, and fraud detection mechanisms to mitigate fraudulent activities.
Keywords: Bank fraud, dark psychology, psychopathology, financial crime, forensic psychology
</p>
      </abstract>

            <kwd-group kwd-group-type="author-keywords">
                <kwd>Bank fraud</kwd>
                <kwd>dark psychology</kwd>
                <kwd>psychopathology</kwd>
                <kwd>financial crime</kwd>
                <kwd>forensic psychology</kwd>
              </kwd-group>
      
      <history>
        <date date-type="received">
          <day>07</day>
          <month>06</month>
          <year>2026</year>
        </date>
                <date date-type="accepted">
          <day>18</day>
          <month>06</month>
          <year>2026</year>
        </date>
              </history>

      <permissions>
        <copyright-statement>Copyright &copy; 2026 by the authors</copyright-statement>
        <license license-type="open-access">
          <license-p>This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.</license-p>
        </license>
      </permissions>

    </article-meta>
  </front>

  
</article>
