An investigation of the linguistic and deceptive characteristics of online grooming types

A defining feature of online grooming (OG) behaviour is the development of a deceptive relationship to hide the intent of sexual abuse. The OG discourse model proposes deceptive trust is central to entrapment and is predominantly achieved through language, yet it is unclear whether the intent of intimacy or sex impacts the communicative and deceptive properties of the chats. Fifty-seven chatlogs categorised according to the European OG Typology were analysed to address this gap. The results showed that whilst intentions might be distinct, adults develop positive/authentic social bonds with victims, and engage in strategies to match with victims who fulfil their goal for intimacy or sex. The impact of this study on the theoretical understanding of OG informs an updated and empirical definition of OG: "OG is when cyber-technology is used to build an emotional connection with a person to exploit their vulnerabilities and gain their trust causing harm and/or distress".PRACTICE IMPACT STATEMENTThis research challenges current understandings of OG that assume the process to be deceptive, demonstrating that adults are skilled at developing positive and authentic bonds with their victims regardless of their initial intent being driven by intimacy or sex. The article will therefore be of interest to both academics and practitioners working within child protection, child sexual abuse and language analysis.