International Integration and National Corruption

We argue that greater degrees of international integration lead to lower levels of corruption, which we define as the misuse of public office for private gain. We theorize that international factors affect a country's level of corruption through two principal channels. One acts through economic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International organization 2003-10, Vol.57 (4), p.761-800
Main Authors: Sandholtz, Wayne, Gray, Mark M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agreements
Bias
Bribery
Colonialism
Communication
Comparative politics
Consumer Price Index
Corruption
Corruption in government
Cross-national analysis
Data analysis
Democracy
Domestic politics
Economic Factors
Economic incentives
Government corruption
Government purchasing
Incentives
Intellectuals
International community
International cooperation
International economic organizations
International economics
International financial institutions
International integration
International organizations
International Relations
International trade
Music
Networks
NGOs
Nongovernmental organizations
Norms
Participation
Perceptions
Political corruption
Political Integration
Political norms
Public officials
Scholarship
Social integration
Socialization
Sociocultural factors
State
Trust
Values
World Bank
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Summary:We argue that greater degrees of international integration lead to lower levels of corruption, which we define as the misuse of public office for private gain. We theorize that international factors affect a country's level of corruption through two principal channels. One acts through economic incentives, altering for various actors the costs and benefits of engaging in corrupt acts. The second mode is normative. Prevailing norms in international society delegitimate and stigmatize corruption. Countries that are more integrated into international society are more exposed to economic and normative pressures against corruption. We therefore test the following hypothesis: the more a country is tied into international networks of exchange, communication, and organization, the lower its level of corruption is likely to be. The analysis of data from approximately 150 countries strongly confirms our expectation.
ISSN:0020-8183
1531-5088
DOI:10.1017/S0020818303574045