Political Corruption

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Summary:

There is a perception that political corruption is an ongoing and ever-present worldwide phenomenon. Indeed, it comes as no surprise that numerous cases of political corruption emerge on an almost daily basis. However, the lack of a clear conceptual understanding of political corruption and how it relates to other forms of corruption -and to the notion of corruption more broadly- continues to be one of the major obstacles in researching political corruption. The study of political corruption has long been central to numerous academic disciplines. The literature has focused on definitions of political corruption, its causes, effects and ways in which the phenomenon can be countered. Indeed, part of the literature views political corruption as a hindrance to any democratic process and as a phenomenon to be eliminated. Moreover, political corruption has been associated with the lack of good governance and with bad politics; it has also been associated with a presupposed negative impact on the public sphere and on public interest. The difficulty in discussing any aspect related to political corruption is linked to the inherent challenge in defining the term and setting its conceptual boundaries. Additionally, political corruption has been subject to numerous debates revolving around ways in which it has been defined; the limitations of present conceptual tools used for researching and analysing political corruption; and the possible scopes of the term itself. One of the challenges faced in defining and conceptually understanding political corruption lies in defining the “political” in corruption. How does political corruption differ from, and relate to, corruption? Does the political in corruption necessitate varying tools of analysis and of conceptual understanding? Additionally, do understandings of public will and public opinion necessarily relate to political corruption, and ways in which it is understood and analysed? The project “Political Corruption: Theoretical and Conceptual Entry Points,” is a research project undertaken by Muwatin Institute for Democracy and Human Rights. The project takes political corruption as a focal area of study given the necessity of providing a novel academic approach to political corruption. In addition to this project, it is envisioned that Muwatin in cooperation with AMAN (The Coalition for Integrity) will work on developing indicators for political corruption that will serve as basis for policy developing policies for the combating of political corruption. Unlike most work on political corruption, this project does not begin with a definition or set categories of what political corruption means, or is supposed to mean. The project’s first stage, “theoretical and conceptual studies of political corruption,” deals particularly with ways in which political corruption has been defined and discussed in the relevant literature. The aim of this stage of the research is to delve into the various conceptual and theoretical discussions of political corruption; to highlight the challenges faced by any research on political corruption; and to attempt to come up with an agreed upon –albeit, perhaps limited- conceptual understanding of political corruption that can be built upon and used for subsequent research stages. The following stages of the research, involving indicators, measurement, policy development, and strategies for combating political corruption will build upon the conceptual and theoretical formulations of political corruption and work towards investigating cases of political corruption, and ways in which it can be concretely and analytically studied. By extensively researching conceptual and theoretical understandings of political corruption, this project aims to develop an in depth knowledge and understanding of the phenomenon, to closely inspect political corruption, and to delineate it from other forms of corruption. While providing a concrete definition of political corruption is a difficult task, it is hoped that bringing into discussion the numerous conceptual and theoretical approaches to political corruption will assist in providing a more extensive understanding of what the term means, and how it can be researched. Still at its nascent stage, the “Political Corruption – Theoretical and Conceptual Entry Points” project aspires to provide a novel approach to political corruption, particularly given Muwatin’s interdisciplinary approaches to research, and the extensive networks and ongoing cooperation with numerous organizations and programs within and outside Birzeit University.

Summary: 
There is a perception that political corruption is an ongoing and ever-present worldwide phenomenon. Indeed, it comes as no surprise that numerous cases of political corruption emerge on an almost daily basis. However, the lack of a clear conceptual understanding of political corruption and how it relates to other forms of corruption -and to the notion of corruption more broadly- continues to be one of the major obstacles in researching political corruption. The study of political corruption has long been central to numerous academic disciplines. The literature has focused on definitions of political corruption, its causes, effects and ways in which the phenomenon can be countered. Indeed, part of the literature views political corruption as a hindrance to any democratic process and as a phenomenon to be eliminated. Moreover, political corruption has been associated with the lack of good governance and with bad politics; it has also been associated with a presupposed negative impact on the public sphere and on public interest. The difficulty in discussing any aspect related to political corruption is linked to the inherent challenge in defining the term and setting its conceptual boundaries. Additionally, political corruption has been subject to numerous debates revolving around ways in which it has been defined; the limitations of present conceptual tools used for researching and analysing political corruption; and the possible scopes of the term itself. One of the challenges faced in defining and conceptually understanding political corruption lies in defining the “political” in corruption. How does political corruption differ from, and relate to, corruption? Does the political in corruption necessitate varying tools of analysis and of conceptual understanding? Additionally, do understandings of public will and public opinion necessarily relate to political corruption, and ways in which it is understood and analysed? The project “Political Corruption: Theoretical and Conceptual Entry Points,” is a research project undertaken by Muwatin Institute for Democracy and Human Rights. The project takes political corruption as a focal area of study given the necessity of providing a novel academic approach to political corruption. In addition to this project, it is envisioned that Muwatin in cooperation with AMAN (The Coalition for Integrity) will work on developing indicators for political corruption that will serve as basis for policy developing policies for the combating of political corruption. Unlike most work on political corruption, this project does not begin with a definition or set categories of what political corruption means, or is supposed to mean. The project’s first stage, “theoretical and conceptual studies of political corruption,” deals particularly with ways in which political corruption has been defined and discussed in the relevant literature. The aim of this stage of the research is to delve into the various conceptual and theoretical discussions of political corruption; to highlight the challenges faced by any research on political corruption; and to attempt to come up with an agreed upon –albeit, perhaps limited- conceptual understanding of political corruption that can be built upon and used for subsequent research stages. The following stages of the research, involving indicators, measurement, policy development, and strategies for combating political corruption will build upon the conceptual and theoretical formulations of political corruption and work towards investigating cases of political corruption, and ways in which it can be concretely and analytically studied. By extensively researching conceptual and theoretical understandings of political corruption, this project aims to develop an in depth knowledge and understanding of the phenomenon, to closely inspect political corruption, and to delineate it from other forms of corruption. While providing a concrete definition of political corruption is a difficult task, it is hoped that bringing into discussion the numerous conceptual and theoretical approaches to political corruption will assist in providing a more extensive understanding of what the term means, and how it can be researched. Still at its nascent stage, the “Political Corruption – Theoretical and Conceptual Entry Points” project aspires to provide a novel approach to political corruption, particularly given Muwatin’s interdisciplinary approaches to research, and the extensive networks and ongoing cooperation with numerous organizations and programs within and outside Birzeit University.
Duration: 
01-01-2019