Need versus Greed or vice versa?
When it comes to embezzlement which comes first-need or greed? It is much like the chicken or the egg. For some people it starts as need and then becomes greed. For others it plain may start as greed. Not to generalize but in the past men have stolen for the three W’s: wine, women or wagers (or the three B’s: booze, broads and bets). Women on the other hand have stolen more for a relationship reason-impress boyfriend, husband, partner, or sick family member. Some criminologists refer to it as a Joan of Arc syndrome. Just this week I saw a story about a million plus dollar embezzlement and some people are talking about it as "pathological altruism"-see the Mark Twain embezzlement on the Ladies of PCC.
I tweet about #menstealmore or #needvsgreed but sometimes it doesn’t always follow that. What I have seen through various news stories on embezzlement is that some women are getting greedier.
According to the ACFE and the cases I have worked on also is that women steal about .40c on the dollar compared to men. What does this mean? Well some women start small and stay small. Other women start small and just get better at their methods allowing them to steal more. Whichever one you think it is at the end of the day women are stealing and you need to pay attention to your "trusted" employees.