The Hidden Order of Corruption: An Institutional Approach

This volume presents an analysis of political corruption as one of the pressing challenges to democracy. Theoretically, The book stresses the role of emerging norms and governance structures within the networks of corrupt exchanges, distinguishing different types of corrupt transactions on the basis of the main actors involved as norm-enforcers, "regulators" or guarantors of illegal dealings. The empirical research is mainly based on analysis of a large number of cases, reconstructed on the basis of a systematic review of documents from judicial proceedings, As well as the press. Comparative in approach, it also reflects on the institutional conditions that facilitate the development of the different types of corruption. The study focuses on developed democratic countries, but also shows how, under certain conditions, similarities emerge with forms of corruption which can be normally observed in developing and so-called "kleptocratic" states.