Corruption: institutional features, social determinants and consequences

The article considers the nature, causes, determinants and consequences of corruption. As a form of social deviation of a delinquent nature and as a type of crime, corruption has a destructive effect on all spheres of social life, primarily on their management - by redistributing their resources and by replacing social values and goals with group and personal ones. Corruption affects not only states but also international affairs; therefore, we need active opposition to corruption from the world community: International Anti-Corruption Day was included in the calendars of 187 countries including Russia. According to the World Bank, the annual global amount of bribes is 1 trillion US dollars. For many countries, corruption has become a threat to national security, which makes them seek and use effective and often radical measures to counter corruption, and to conduct comprehensive studies of corruption as an objective and widespread social phenomenon. The authors consider corruption on the basis of an interdisciplinary methodology with an emphasis on institutional and structural-functional approaches, which allowed to identify institutional features of corruption, its structure, functions and social consequences, and to assess the efficiency of anti-corruption measures. The article is based on the statistical data on the dynamics of corruption in Russia and the Republic of Bashkortostan in 2012-2020, and on the results of the sociological survey conducted by the Institute for Strategic Studies of the Republic of Bashkortostan in 2020 according to the methodology for assessing corruption described in the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation. The survey focused on the problems in the interaction of citizens and employees of state and municipal authorities (everyday corruption), and in the interaction of authorities and business (business corruption) (the corresponding samples were 814 and 300 people). The study of everyday corruption was conducted by individual formalized interviews, of business corruption - by the online survey on the Google Forms.

The dark mechanics of private sector corruption

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings This viewpoint paper concentrates on unpacking the causes of and solutions to private sector, business-to-business corruption. This type of corruption is caused by any combination of economic goals and pressures, a psychology of cultural acceptance, and ineffective legislative consequences. In particular, the authors advocate internal company-wide anti-corruption measures, which can self-regulate through robust corporate governance and reporting, through company leaders taking an ethical anti-corruption stance to lead by example, and through signing up to voluntary codes of practice that their employees get trained in. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers’ hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Corporate criminal liability for Bribery in Kuwait: issues in disclosing commissions

Purpose This study aims to critically analyse corporate criminal liability for bribery in Kuwait, by focusing on laws and regulations as key problem-solving mechanisms. To that end, it identifies and assesses the existing anti-bribery laws in Kuwait, including a legal evaluation based on international standards. This study raises several issues concerning the lack of regulations of private bribery, facilitating payments and kickbacks in government contracts, and gifts and hospitalities in private sector, using UK Bribery Act 2010 (UK BA 2010) as a reference. This study showcases how these legal shortcomings are inconsistent with international treaties, and undermine efforts to tackle corruption. Emphasis has been put on criminalising private bribery, regulating the acceptance of hospitalities and gifts and abolishing the commission payment regime in public contracts in Kuwait. Design/methodology/approach Adopting a doctrinal focus, this paper examines case studies on curbing corporate bribery using both primary and secondary sources. Given the increasingly transitional and organised nature of business corruption, extravagant gifts and facilitating payments in public procurements globally, a comparison is drawn with the UK BA 2010. Findings Kuwait’s legal system does not criminalise bribery in private sector. Its anti-bribery laws are not at par with international standards. Therefore, the laws on disclosing commissions in public contracts must be abolished, and facilitating payments and hospitality payments in private sector must be regulated. Originality/value This study explores corporate criminal liability for bribery in Kuwait by investigating the weaknesses and legal shortcomings of the existing anti-bribery laws, and proposing reforms to counter these using UK BA 2010 as a guide.

Global Initiatives and Efficiency of Business Corruption Combating Operations of the Group of Twenty

The relevance of this issue is due to the fact that the events that began in the new Millennium in the global anti-corruption movement have further highlighted the important role of the fight against corruption in the business sector. A special role in combating corruption in the sphere at the global level is assigned to the Group of twenty — G20. In the course of the research, the author came to the conclusion that, quite positively, the functioning of the business sphere was affected by the adoption in November 12, 2010 in the city of In Seoul, the leaders of the G20 “Anti-corruption action Plan”, which for the first time openly called for a closer public-private partnership in the fight against corruption. Today, the G20 is a group of key countries with developed and emerging market economies. As major trading powers, the G20 has a special responsibility to prevent and combat corruption, create a legal and policy framework that promotes a clean business environment, and continue to assist countries in their efforts to build capacity to fight corruption. Today, the G20 sets a good example for many countries, international associations, and groups to fight corruption in business.

CORRUPTION AS A RISK FACTOR OF LIMITING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ECONOMY

The article is devoted to the problem of the corruption component in the Russian economy. Considered and structured modern forms of contradictions in the interaction between business and power structures. The phenomenon of rent-oriented behavior of power state structures and how this phenomenon affects the modern factors of exploitation of a person by a person is considered in detail. The main features of corruption relations and the mechanisms of functioning of the practices of business corruption in modern Russia are systematized. Conclusions are drawn from the analysis of scientific sources on the essence and characteristics of rent-seeking behavior of economic entities in terms of the corruption component.

Supply chain corruption practices circumventing sustainability standards: wolves in sheep's clothing

PurposeA growing number of private, voluntary and mandatory sustainability standards have recently emerged. However, supply chain corruption practices as mechanisms to circumvent sustainability standards have also grown and occur regularly. This paper strives to elaborate theory on the intersection of institutional theory, business corruption and the sustainability standards literature by investigating factors that influence the emergence of supply chain corruption practices.Design/methodology/approachBased on secondary data, four in-depth case studies of supply chain corruption practices are investigated through the use of adaptive theory and the method of constant comparisons to elaborate theory on this important phenomenon.FindingsThe paper suggests that although sustainability standards can improve supply chain sustainability performance, if they are adopted only symbolically and not substantively, unanticipated outcomes such as supply chain corruption may occur. The study proposes a typology of supply chain corruption practices, further explores the symbolic adoption of sustainability standards in supply chains and proposes the novel construct of “social isomorphism for corruption.” Since focal companies play central roles in leading supply chain corruption practices, we reason that they can also play a pivotal role in preventing supply chain corruption practices by promoting the substantive adoption of sustainability standards across their supply chains.Originality/valueThis paper elaborates theory on the challenging phenomenon of corruption in supply chains by linking the supply chain management literature to the corruption and the sustainability discourses and offers important insights to aid our understanding on the topic. It generates six propositions and four contributions to the sustainable supply chain management theory, practice and policy.

Romanian Business Leaders’ Perceptions of Business-to-Business Corruption: Leading More Responsible Businesses?

Business-to-business (B2B) corruption, also known as private corruption, refers to unethical or illicit activities between private parties, without the direct participation of the state. Existing literature on the topic, while still limited, has taken several avenues, from qualitative studies to perception-based surveys and research experiments. Upon reviewing key studies and their findings, this article concentrates on research questions related to: business people’s perceptions on the determinants that favor B2B corruption in Romania, consequences of the phenomenon, and potential solutions. Findings are based on primary data collected through a 2019 questionnaire administered to 120 business leaders in Romania. Results confirm earlier studies’ findings that general context, malfunction of the institutions, and mentality favor B2B corruption, and that there is a lack of consensus among the business community on how to recognize and deal with various forms of B2B corruption, despite the widely spread belief that B2B corruption negatively affects business activities. Also, both internal and external solutions are considered to work against B2B corruption. The current article also opens new avenues in the literature, showing that: the probability to face B2B corruption increases with business leaders’ professional experience; preferences on how to deal with corruption cases vary based on a firm’s capital structure (domestic vs. foreign), reflecting the importance of organizational culture; and business leaders overwhelmingly want to fight against B2B corruption through both internal and external measures. Substantial progress, however, will require a proper common understanding by the private sector of what constitutes B2B corruption, including its causes, consequences, and remedies.