Corruption Paradigm and Psychology Lecture Series

Vocabulary flashcards covering the definitions, theoretical models, measurement indices, and psychological mechanisms of corruption as presented in the lecture series.

Corruption Paradigm

The framework used to understand and analyze corruption, including its definitions, causes, consequences, and strategies for combating it.

1991

The year of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, which led to a transition in post-communist countries that exposed pervasive corruption.

Transparency International (TI)

A non-governmental organization founded in 1993 by former World Bank employees to combat global corruption through awareness, research, and policy advocacy.

Corruption (Transparency International definition)

The abuse of an entrusted power for private gain.

Entrusted Power

The authority given to individuals by others to perform specific roles on their behalf in business, government, or civil society.

Principal-Agent Model

A framework where a principal delegates authority to an agent, potentially leading to corruption due to differing interests and information asymmetry.

Principal

The person or entity (e.g., a business owner or government) who delegates authority to another to perform a task.

Agent

The individual (e.g., an employee or bureaucrat) hired by a principal to perform a task on their behalf.

Collective Action Theory

A theory viewing corruption as a problem where rational actors maximize self-interest based on shared expectations that others are also acting corruptly.

Grand Corruption

Corruption involving large sums of money and high-level officials, such as winning government contracts dishonestly or embezzling public funds.

Petty Corruption

Corruption involving smaller sums and low-level officials, such as bribes to traffic police or minor bureaucrats to expedite paperwork.

Top-down Corruption

Corruption originating from higher-level officials who take bribes and pass down instructions to lower-level bureaucrats, sharing the illicit gains.

Bottom-up Corruption

Corruption initiated by low-level bureaucrats who take bribes and may share a portion with superiors to avoid punishment or ensure complicity.

Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI)

An annual tool published by Transparency International since 1995 that ranks countries on a scale of $0$ to $100$ based on expert assessments of corruption.

Global Corruption Barometer (GCB)

A survey of households and individuals regarding their direct encounters with corruption and bribery, offering a grassroots perspective.

Control of Corruption Index

A part of the World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) that evaluates the extent to which public power is exercised for private gain across over $200$ countries.

Rent-seeking

The pursuit of increasing one's wealth without creating new wealth, typically by manipulating the social or political environment.

Utility Maximization

A basic economic principle where individuals act to maximize their self-interest; it becomes problematic when systems fail to channel it productively.

Obedience to Authority

A phenomenon demonstrated by Stanley Milgram where individuals follow orders from authority figures even if the actions are unethical or harmful.

Moral Disengagement

A theory by Albert Bandura involving cognitive processes like moral justification and euphemistic labeling that allow individuals to act unethically without guilt.

Moral Justification

A mechanism of moral disengagement where corrupt actions are reframed as serving a higher purpose or greater good.

Euphemistic Labeling

The use of language to downplay the severity of corruption, such as calling a bribe a "facilitation payment" or "greasing the wheels."

Displacement of Responsibility

A psychological mechanism where individuals shift the blame for corrupt actions onto others, such as superiors or societal norms.

Cognitive Dissonance

A theory by Leon Festinger describing the discomfort felt when beliefs and actions conflict, often resolved by rationalizing the corrupt behavior.

Behavioral Nudges

Subtle interventions that influence people's behavior by altering the context of decision-making, used to promote integrity and ethical behavior.

Ledeneva (2013)

A researcher who highlighted criticisms of corruption indices, including their reliance on subjective perceptions and lack of methodological transparency.