Corruption in the Global South Flashcards
What is corruption?
Common definition: misuse of public office for private or political gain. it’s an outcome – a reflection of a country’s legal, economic, cultural and political institutions and it’s not exclusive to public life
What is corruption according to Rose Ackermann (2004)?
Corruption could be explicitly illegal, or borderline legal (deal with immoral aspects, not legal). It can be administrative corruption or a ‘captured’ state. Or it could be ‘grand scale’ or petty corruption
How to measure corruption and three types of measures
measuring corruption is a difficult task, due to the various forms (three types of measure):
risk-assessment, perception-based sources , and control of corruption
what are the common characteristics of a country’s high corruption?
LDC
Low level of income
closed economies (any socialists or ASI models )
regulation
religion influence
What are the causes of corruption in the LDCs?
low income/job insecurity/low wages
scarce public benefits
high levels of inflation
ineffective controls
lack of ‘role models’ (scammers)
some objective measures still detected and the traditional way of studying corruption
- corruption rankings are (kind of) subjective
- some objective measures still be detected: bribery, policies, and price comparison
- the traditional way of studying corruption is by anecdotic information
Do higher wages for bureaucrats reduce corruption?
according to Becker & Stigler (1974), there is some correlation between higher wages and lower corruption, but…? (bureaucrats, if they have more money, will cost A LOT more)
Can competition reduce corruption?
- free market increases the cost of doing business, therefore, fewer resources are destined for bribery
- more regulation correlates to more corruption. Less regulation diminishes corruption
- the voice and exit dilemma
Why have there been so few (recently) successful attempts to fight corruption?
- strong institutions (judiciary, police, and financial auditors)
- strong and independent watchdogs (Agencies)
- transparency and public access to information (strongest point and best ressources to catch corruption) make it public
- grass-root monitoring (mainly used in Asia (India and Pakistan)
Does corruption adversely affect growth?
- the (myth) of efficient corruption
- on a micro-level, some evidence can be found
- on a macro level, it’s inconclusive
why is there corruption in the GS?
Is a world phenomenon, a lot of axes. approach from political, sociological, international studies, legal, and economic POV, goes to the idea of development.
