A Report On Reporting: Why Peers Report Integrity and Law Violations in Public Organizations

The archives of three bureaus of integrity are analyzed in order to study the reasons for reporting integrity and law violations within public organizations. Peer reporting accounts for only a small percentage of cases; most investigations originate from routine and continuous institutional controls...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public administration review 2010-09, Vol.70 (5), p.767-779
Main Author: De Graaf, Gjalt
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Archives
Archives & records
Business ethics
Corruption in government
Criminal investigation
Government (Administrative Body)
Government corruption
Institutions
Integrity
Journalism
Justice
Larceny
Law
Management
Peer groups
Peers
Police
Pragmatics
Prisoners
Public administration
Punishment
Qualitative research
Studies
Tough Contemporary Public Management Dilemmas
Violations
Whistleblowing
Work environment
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Summary:The archives of three bureaus of integrity are analyzed in order to study the reasons for reporting integrity and law violations within public organizations. Peer reporting accounts for only a small percentage of cases; most investigations originate from routine and continuous institutional controls. What are the reasons peers choose to report or not report? A sense of justice is most important, followed by self-protection and protection of the wrongdoer. The most important reason against coming forward is the reporter's fear of negative consequences. One surprising rationale for not reporting is that an individual feels responsible for the wrongdoer's punishment. Six propositions are elicited from this research as well as specific pragmatic recommendations for management procedures to improve reporting of integrity and/or law violations.
ISSN:0033-3352
1540-6210
DOI:10.1111/j.1540-6210.2010.02204.x