Corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense undertaken by a person or an organization entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities like bribery, influence peddling, and embezzlement, as well as practices that are legal in many countries, such as lobbying. Political corruption occurs when an office-holder or other governmental employee acts in an official capacity for personal gain.
Historically, "corruption" has had a broader meaning, concerned with an activity's impact on morals and societal well-being. For example, the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates was partly condemned to death for "corrupting the young."
Contemporary corruption is perceived as most common in kleptocracies, oligarchies, narco-states, and mafia states; however, more recent research and policy statements acknowledge that it also exists in wealthy capitalist economies. In How Corrupt is Britain, David Whyte reveals that corruption exists "across a wide range of venerated institutions" in the UK, ranked as one of the least corrupt countries by the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). In a 2022 speech on "Modern Corruption", USAID Administrator Samantha Power stated: "Corruption is no longer just about individual autocrats pilfering their nation's wealth to live large", but also involves sophisticated transnational networks, including financial institutions hidden in secrecy. Responding to Whyte's book, George Monbiot criticized the CPI for its narrow definition of corruption that surveys primarily only Western executives about bribery. Similarly, others point out that "global metrics systematically under-measure 'corruption of the rich' - which tends to be legalized, institutionalized, and ambiguously unethical - as opposed to 'corruption of the poor.'"
Corruption and crime are endemic sociological occurrences that appear regularly in virtually all countries on a global scale in varying degrees and proportions. Recent data suggests corruption is on the rise. Each nation allocates domestic resources for the control and regulation of corruption and the deterrence of crime. Strategies undertaken to counter corruption are often summarized under the umbrella term anti-corruption. Additionally, global initiatives like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16 also have a targeted goal to substantially reduce corruption in all forms. Recent initiatives like the Tax Justice Network go beyond bribery and theft and bring attention to tax abuses.
Definitions and scales
Stephen D. Morris, a professor of politics, wrote that political corruption is the illegitimate use of public power to benefit a private interest. Economist Ian Senior defined corruption as secretly providing a good or service to a third party to influence specific actions that benefit the corrupt, a third party, or both in which the corrupt agent has authority. World Bank economist Daniel Kaufmann extended the concept to include "legal corruption," in which power is abused within the confines of the law—as those with power often can make laws for their protection. The effect of corruption on infrastructure is that it increases costs and construction time, lowers quality, and decreases benefits.
Corruption is a complex phenomenon that can occur on different scales. It ranges from small favors between a small number of people (petty corruption) to corruption that affects the government on a large scale (grand corruption) and corruption that is so prevalent that it is part of the everyday structure of society, including corruption as one of the symptoms of organized crime (systemic corruption). "Corruption of the rich is particularly hard to measure and excluded mainly from conventional metrics like the CPI.
Several indicators and tools have been developed that can measure different forms of corruption with increasing accuracy. However, when those are impractical, one study suggests using body fat as a rough guide after finding that the obesity of cabinet ministers in post-Soviet states was highly correlated with more accurate corruption measures.
Petty Theft, Grand Theft, Speed Money, Access Money
Political economist Yuen Yuen Ang categorizes corruption into four types, including both petty and grand versions, as well as legal and illegal forms: petty theft, grand theft, speed money, and access money. According to her definition, speed money refers to petty bribes that businesses or citizens give to bureaucrats to navigate obstacles or expedite processes. This type of corruption is linked to the "efficient grease hypothesis," which economists have found burdensome for businesses in practice. Ang describes access money as high-stakes rewards given by business actors to powerful officials, not only for speed but also to gain access to exclusive, valuable privileges. While most theories about bribery concentrate on speed money, they often overlook access money. From a business person’s perspective, access money is less like a tax and more like an investment, making it more of a hindrance than a facilitator. The Unbundled Corruption Index assesses the prevalence of these four corruption types.
While corruption involving theft and bribery is widespread in poor countries, access-related corruption can be found in both poor and rich nations.
Petty corruption
Petty corruption occurs on a smaller scale and takes place at the implementation level of public services when public officials interact with citizens. For example, this type of corruption is evident in various small locations such as registration offices, police stations, state licensing boards, and numerous other private and governmental sectors.
Grand corruption
Grand corruption denotes corruption that takes place at the highest levels of government, resulting in a significant erosion of the political, legal, and economic systems. This form of corruption is commonly encountered in countries with authoritarian or dictatorial regimes, as well as in those lacking adequate oversight to fight against corruption.
Many countries have a government system divided into the legislative, executive, and judicial branches to provide independent services that are less vulnerable to significant corruption due to their independence from one another.
Systemic corruption
Systemic corruption (or endemic corruption) is corruption that is primarily due to an organization's or process's weaknesses. It can be contrasted with individual officials or agents who act corruptly within the system.
Factors that encourage systemic corruption include conflicting incentives, discretionary powers, monopolistic dominance, lack of transparency, low pay, and a culture of impunity. Specific acts of corruption include bribery, extortion, and embezzlement within a system where corruption becomes the norm rather than the exception. Scholars differentiate between centralized and decentralized systemic corruption, depending on the state or government corruption level; in countries like the post-Soviet states, both types are present. Some scholars contend that Western governments have a negative duty to protect against the systemic corruption of underdeveloped governments.
Corruption has been a major issue in China, where society relies heavily on personal relationships. By the late 20th century, this, combined with a newfound desire for wealth, led to escalating levels of corruption. Historian Keith Schoppa states that bribery was just one of the tools of Chinese corruption, which also encompassed "embezzlement, nepotism, smuggling, extortion, cronyism, kickbacks, deception, fraud, squandering of public funds, illegal business transactions, stock manipulation, and real estate fraud." In light of the continual anti-corruption campaigns, it was a wise precaution to move as much of the ill-gotten gains as possible overseas.
In Latin American countries, corruption is tolerated due to the cultural norms of the institutions. In contrast, countries like the United States have a relatively strong sense of trust among strangers, which is lacking in Latin America. In these countries, this trust is absent, and social norms suggest that no stranger is responsible for the wellbeing or happiness of another. Instead, trust is typically placed in acquaintances. Acquaintances are treated with trust and respect—a level of trust not often found among acquaintances in the U.S. This dynamic allows for corruption in Latin America. When there is strong enough trust within an administration that members believe no one will betray others, corrupt practices can easily occur.
Money in Politics
While petty, grand, and systemic corruption, as described above, is primarily found in poor countries with weak institutions, recent literature has shifted focus to money politics in affluent democracies and severe global inequalities. Simon Weschle at Syracuse University investigates the prevalence of campaign finance and its implications for democracy. Kristin Surak at the London School of Economics analyzes the contentious practice of millionaires purchasing "golden passports" without real intention of migrating. In her words, "a full-blown citizenship industry that thrives on global inequalities" has emerged.
State-Business Collusion
Recent research highlights the rise of "a specific type of large, non-state business group" resembling a mafia system in China, although it does not necessarily involve bribery. In this context, the line between public and private actors becomes unclear.
- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Corruption ]
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