Purpose Many of the characteristics embodied by successful psychopaths, such as superficial charm, cool decisiveness and a grandiose self-worth, are often treated synonymously with corporate leadership qualities. Consequently, it is possible that successful psychopaths are actively being selected for corporate positions as they exemplify the perfect candidate. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether or not the recruitment for positions of higher social status are inadvertently seeking out individuals with psychopathic tendencies to run their companies using similar characteristics in their job advertisements. Design/methodology/approach The current study will provide a deeper understanding of successful psychopaths whilst exploring the role of the “Westernized” corporation in recruiting successful psychopaths into their businesses through character descriptions in 25 executive career advertisements using Wexler’s (2008) psychopathic Personality Dimensions And Positively Reinforced Corporate Labels. Findings The results demonstrated that corporations are seeking out characteristics that are synonymous to Factor 1 psychopathic personality traits, which could increase the propensity of successful psychopaths in the workplace. Research limitations/implications Although the sample was representative for the current study, the sample size is minimal. Further, most companies in the sample were taken from the public sector. Given the implicit sample bias, the results and conclusions must be interpreted with caution. Future research should expand the relationship between psychopathic personality traits and corporate labels in a broader context. Practical implications The results also allude to potential protective factors that could be put in place by corporations during their hiring process. These factors include measures for empathy and emotional IQ. Beyond the hiring process, it is suggested that incentive-based promotions should be lessened and replaced with incentives that promote care and respect for one another. Social implications Whilst the inability for the public to conceptualize white-collar crime as a true form of crime conducted by powerful individuals is apparent, it is suggested that change should begin with public awareness and academia. With additional research on psychopathy in the field of criminology and organizational psychology, public awareness can be amplified. Originality/value The current study allows for an interdisciplinary perspective towards the concept of successful psychopathy by highlighting the increased potential for corporate scams and white-collar criminality. Specifically, the current study introduces a psycho-social criminological perspective.

In the face of rapid technological development of investigative technologies, broader and more meaningful public engagement in policy-making is paramount. In this article, we identify police procurement and use of facial recognition technology (FRT) as a key example of the need for public input to avoid undermining trust in law enforcement. Specifically, public engagement should be incorporated into police decisions regarding the acquisition, use, and assessment of the effectiveness of FRT, via an oversight framework that incorporates citizen stakeholders. Genuine public engagement requires sufficient and accurate information to be openly available at the outset, and the public must be able to dialogue and discuss their perspectives and ideas with others. The approach outlined in this article could serve as a model for addressing policy development barriers that often arise in relation to privacy invasive technologies and their uses by police.

Policing is increasingly being shaped by data collection and analysis. However, we still know little about the quality of the data police services acquire and utilize. Drawing on a survey of analysts from across Canada, this article examines several data collection, analysis, and quality issues. We argue that as we move towards an era of big data policing it is imperative that police services pay more attention to the quality of the data they collect. We conclude by discussing the implications of ignoring data quality issues and the need to develop a more robust research culture in policing.

As a contentious issue affecting the character, boundaries and future of social order, migration represents a recurrent source of moral panic. While analysts have considered conventional outlets’ role in triggering collective alarm, less is known about social media’s effects on migration’s construction as a social problem. Working with an original dataset of tweets from the 2019 Canadian election, a period of heightened concern and outcry for significant portions of the electorate, this paper employs content analytic methods to assess migration’s online demonization and interrogate the patterns of framing, participation and engagement brought within the issue’s orbit. Alongside documenting significant disquiet and antipathy, its findings suggest that Twitter is transforming panic production and facilitating forms of reaction involving mass-participation and collaboration; interference from automated ‘bots’ and considerable dispute, dissent and negotiation. Based on these results, the sensitizing concept of platformed panics is proposed to capture how social media’s technical affordances, design and appropriation align to promote moral panics that are networked, algorithmic and contested.

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