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Corruption, Attitudes, and Education: Survey Evidence from Nepal

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  • Truex, Rory
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    Abstract

    Summary Social norms can reduce the costs of corrupt behavior and push a society toward a high-corruption equilibrium, but what determines individual attitudes toward corruption? How does acceptance vary across different types of corrupt behavior? An original survey of Kathmandu residents shows substantial variation in attitudes toward different types of corrupt behavior. Overall, respondents generally agreed that large-scale bribery was unacceptable, but there was relative discord over behaviors involving petty corruption, gift giving, and favoritism. Education consistently emerged as the primary determinant of these attitudes, with more educated respondents showing less accepting attitudes across the range of corrupt behaviors. These findings suggest that improving access to education in developing countries may reduce the presence of corruption norms and ultimately corruption itself, although further research is needed to test the strength of these relationships outside of Nepal.

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    Article provided by Elsevier in its journal World Development.

    Volume (Year): 39 (2011)
    Issue (Month): 7 (July)
    Pages: 1133-1142

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    Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:39:y:2011:i:7:p:1133-1142
    Contact details of provider: Web page: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev

    Keywords: Corruption Social norms Education Corruption acceptance survey Nepal Asia;

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    Cited by:

    1. Artjoms Ivlevs & Timothy Hinks, 2013. "Global economic crisis and corruption experience: Evidence from transition economies," Working Papers 20131315, Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Bristol Business School, University of the West of England, Bristol.
    2. Lee, Wang-Sheng & Guven, Cahit, 2013. "Engaging in Corruption: The Influence of Cultural Values and Contagion Effects at the Micro Level," IZA Discussion Papers 7685, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
    3. Simplice Asongu & Jacinta Nwachukwu, 2014. "The Role of Lifelong Learning in Political Stability and Non-violence: Evidence from Africa," Working Papers 14/029, African Governance and Development Institute..
    4. Tetsushi Sonobe, 2012. "An Inquiry into Corruption Norms: Survey Data of GRIPS Alumni," GRIPS Discussion Papers 12-15, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.
    5. Dimant, Eugen, 2014. "The Antecedents and Effects of Corruption - A Reassessment of Current (Empirical) Findings," MPRA Paper 60947, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Timothy Hinks & Artjoms Ivlevs, 2012. "Bribing Behaviour and Sample Selection: Evidence from Post-Socialist countries and Western Europe," Working Papers 20121208, Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Bristol Business School, University of the West of England, Bristol.

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