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Very Short Introductions #426
Corruption: A Very Short Introduction
Corruption is one of the biggest global issues, ahead of extreme poverty, unemployment, the rising cost of food and energy, climate change, and terrorism. It is thought to be one of the principal causes of poverty around the globe. Its significance in the contemporary world cannot be undervalued.In this Very Short Introduction , Leslie Holmes looks the history of corruption across the millennia and considers why the international community has only highlighted it as a problem in the past two decades. Holmes explores the phenomenon from several different perspectives, from the cultural differences affecting how corruption is defined, its impact, its various causes, and the possible remedies. Providing evidence of corruption and considering ways to address it around the world, this is an important introduction to a significant and serious global issue.ABOUT THEThe Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
144 pages, Paperback
First published March 31, 2015
29 people are currently reading
473 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
September 22, 2021
A great thing about vsi books is that they're all written by experts of their respective fields, so with each book you can be sure to learn something substantial. But a downside to this is that these days expertise is synonymous with specialization. The author of this book is a specialist of corruption in post-communist countries and unfortunately, throughout the book the focus is more on post-communist countries even though the title indicates a broader scope. Now, this is not to say that he doesn't offer a bird's eye view, he does. But when he decides to swoop in on particulars, which takes the form of examples in this book, we end up in a region of bias and if one isn't careful enough the particular might be mistaken for the general.
The author rightly points out that cultural differences across the world make it difficult for us to properly define corruption. But here's an indicator of his bias: he seems to think that lobbying which is currently turning into global phenomenon but had its roots in America and is still the strongest there, need not be classified as corruption because sometimes lobbying is done for good causes that we may not be able to achieve by traditional means. Now in my opinion, this doesn't make it any less corrupt. We shouldn't have to lobby for good causes, if the system requires this of us, it's time to change the system.
A common argument across discourses concerning corruption is that former colonies are less developed because they're more prone to corruption. (victim blaming, anyone? Gaslighting? Or just CuLtuRAl DiFFerEncCe?) The author acknowledges and explains that this is a very crude argument and at the very least needs more refining and I appreciate that. See? We jump at scraps and bits, that's the state we've been left in.
Thankfully, the author also writes about how neoliberalism and increased privatisation has led to more corruption and how USA's increased pressure on other countries to curb corruption is an indicator of its own private interests. The USA was not really goody-goody-two-shoes before the 1990s or to put it more specifically - USA did not want to upset its allies during the cold war era and therefore seemed to have no problem with corruption back then.
The author also provides a lot of statistics and data that I was very bored by, but which are of course are crucial to any proper study of global corruption.
The author rightly points out that cultural differences across the world make it difficult for us to properly define corruption. But here's an indicator of his bias: he seems to think that lobbying which is currently turning into global phenomenon but had its roots in America and is still the strongest there, need not be classified as corruption because sometimes lobbying is done for good causes that we may not be able to achieve by traditional means. Now in my opinion, this doesn't make it any less corrupt. We shouldn't have to lobby for good causes, if the system requires this of us, it's time to change the system.
A common argument across discourses concerning corruption is that former colonies are less developed because they're more prone to corruption. (victim blaming, anyone? Gaslighting? Or just CuLtuRAl DiFFerEncCe?) The author acknowledges and explains that this is a very crude argument and at the very least needs more refining and I appreciate that. See? We jump at scraps and bits, that's the state we've been left in.
Thankfully, the author also writes about how neoliberalism and increased privatisation has led to more corruption and how USA's increased pressure on other countries to curb corruption is an indicator of its own private interests. The USA was not really goody-goody-two-shoes before the 1990s or to put it more specifically - USA did not want to upset its allies during the cold war era and therefore seemed to have no problem with corruption back then.
The author also provides a lot of statistics and data that I was very bored by, but which are of course are crucial to any proper study of global corruption.
July 19, 2018
This was a pretty decent overview of corruption, both in government and in business, the theory of corruption, and the signs, effects, costs, and consequences (social, economic, etc.) of corruption. The only odd part is where she claims lobbying and corporate contributions aren't really corruption (bribery). Nobody buys that.
December 11, 2018
这么复杂的话题，用这么短的篇幅介绍完毕，没有深入，但是胜在清晰，赞
November 9, 2015
Problems with talking about corruption: it's hard to define, it's hard to delineate what counts as corruption with respect to surrounding culture, and it's hard to measure because by most definitions it is something hidden. The author does not shy away from these problems, but addresses them as fully as possible. He says that interest in corruption as an academic discipline (within various social sciences) is only around twenty or so years old (coming out of the end of the Cold War). I have no reason to doubt him, but his lack of a historical background seriously hampers his efforts to describe the problem.
Chapter 1: What is corruption?
Chapter 2: Why corruption is a problem
Chapter 3: Can we measure corruption?
Chapter 4: Psycho-social and cultural explanations
Chapter 5: System-related explanations
Chapter 6: What can states do?
Chapter 7: What else can be done?
Chapter 1: What is corruption?
Chapter 2: Why corruption is a problem
Chapter 3: Can we measure corruption?
Chapter 4: Psycho-social and cultural explanations
Chapter 5: System-related explanations
Chapter 6: What can states do?
Chapter 7: What else can be done?
July 5, 2016
كتاب ممتاز كمقدمة لمن يرغب من غير المتخصصين في فهم قضية الفساد بشكل علمي. لغة سلسة وجميلة ويتميز بعرض التصورات والمواقف المختلفة حتى اون تبنت المؤلفة موقفها الخاص.
February 17, 2021
A Short introduction to this, Leslie gives perspective from all sides. He says, the more hierarchical the culture, the more likely the corruption might be higher.\
What he doesn't talk?
Change of Heart for a Human Being changes everything. This comes from socio-religious ways.
Read this when you are traveling
Deus Vult,
Gottfried
What he doesn't talk?
Change of Heart for a Human Being changes everything. This comes from socio-religious ways.
Read this when you are traveling
Deus Vult,
Gottfried
October 21, 2023
Goede introductie op het concept corruptie en zeker inspiratie uit gehaald voor mijn onderzoek.
October 17, 2019
สนุกใช้ได้เลย เล่มนี้แบ่งเนื้อหาขอคอร์รัปชันไว้หลากมุมมอง หลายมิติ แถมยังใส่รายละเอียดในระดับที่สามารถไป explore ในหัวข้อต่างๆ เพิ่มเติมได้ด้วยตนเอง
ส่วนตัวมองว่าแตะในแง่ economics น้อยไปนิด (ความชอบส่วนบุคคล ฮา) แต่เน้นเรื่องรัฐศาสตร์และวัฒนธรรมมากกว่า
แนะนำครับ แค่ส่วนแรกที่อธิบายนิยามของคอร์รัปชันก็สนุกใช้ได้แล้ว
ส่วนตัวมองว่าแตะในแง่ economics น้อยไปนิด (ความชอบส่วนบุคคล ฮา) แต่เน้นเรื่องรัฐศาสตร์และวัฒนธรรมมากกว่า
แนะนำครับ แค่ส่วนแรกที่อธิบายนิยามของคอร์รัปชันก็สนุกใช้ได้แล้ว
June 15, 2015
Quite an accessible explanation of this malady, the issues in delineating it - and the sobering thought that it can only be minimised, not eradicated totally unless there is a radical new change in human mentality, economics and society...
October 14, 2025
Leslie Holmes’ Band „Corruption: A Very Short Introduction“ bietet eine klar strukturierte Einführung in das komplexe Phänomen der Korruption. Besonders überzeugend ist, wie er die Definitionsproblematik und die unterschiedlichen Klassifikationen – von „Black, White and Gray“ bis zu „Grass-Eating“ vs. „Meat-Eating“ – darstellt, ohne den Leser zu überfrachten. Holmes zeigt prägnant die negativen Auswirkungen von Korruption auf Gesellschaft, Wirtschaft und Politik: Sie verschärft Ungleichheit, begünstigt Umweltzerstörung und destabilisiert politische Systeme.
Darüber hinaus behandelt Holmes systematisch die Methoden zur Messung von Korruption, etwa den Corruption Perceptions Index oder Umfragen, und erläutert die psychosozialen, kulturellen und systemischen Ursachen. Besonders hilfreich ist die Analyse der verschiedenen staatlichen und internationalen Maßnahmen: von rechtlichen „Straf“-Mechanismen über Anreizsysteme bis hin zu Interventionen von Zivilgesellschaft und internationalen Organisationen. Das Buch vermittelt so ein umfassendes Bild der Mechanismen von Korruption und der Herausforderungen, die mit ihrer Bekämpfung verbunden sind.
Aus meiner Sicht gibt es jedoch einen zentralen Kritikpunkt: Holmes berücksichtigt die Perspektive der Menschen, die direkt unter Korruption leiden, nur sehr begrenzt. Seine Analyse bleibt überwiegend „von oben“ – aus Sicht von Staaten, Behörden und Geschäftsleuten oder internationalen Indizes. Die empirische Forschung von Esther Duflo und ihren Kollegen zeigt hingegen, dass Korruption oft am besten von unten nach oben verstanden werden kann: Wer alltäglich Bestechung, Vetternwirtschaft oder bürokratische Hürden erlebt, nimmt die Dynamiken, Kosten und realen Folgen von Korruption deutlich anders wahr als statistische Messungen oder offizielle Analysen.
Vor diesem Hintergrund erscheint die klassische „Null-Toleranz“-Rhetorik problematisch. Für mich stellt sich daher die provokative Frage, ob es nicht manchmal sinnvoller wäre, bestimmte Formen von Korruption transparent und reguliertzu handhaben – eine Art „Politik der offenen Karten“. Holmes liefert die Grundlagen, um das Problem zu verstehen, doch um die Perspektive der tatsächlichen Opfer einzubeziehen und mögliche alternative Ansätze zu denken, ist die Arbeit von Duflo meiner Meinung nach unverzichtbar.
Ein aktuelles Beispiel, das diesen Gedanken illustriert, sind die Enhanced Games, eine geplante Sportveranstaltung, bei der leistungssteigernde Substanzen legal und transparent eingesetzt werden sollen. In diesem hypothetischen Szenario verschwinden die traditionellen moralischen Bewertungen von „Cheating“ und zeigen, dass die Beurteilung von Vorteilen, Macht und Fairness stark von den Regeln des Systems abhängt. Für mich verdeutlicht dies, dass Korruption nicht immer schwarz-weiß ist, sondern kontextabhängig – ein Gedanke, den Holmes’ Analyse zwar vorbereitet, aber nicht explizit entwickelt. Die Enhanced Games erscheinen so wie eine radikale praktische Variante der „Politik der offenen Karten“, die meine Reflexion über Transparenz, Fairness und Korruption inspiriert.
Darüber hinaus behandelt Holmes systematisch die Methoden zur Messung von Korruption, etwa den Corruption Perceptions Index oder Umfragen, und erläutert die psychosozialen, kulturellen und systemischen Ursachen. Besonders hilfreich ist die Analyse der verschiedenen staatlichen und internationalen Maßnahmen: von rechtlichen „Straf“-Mechanismen über Anreizsysteme bis hin zu Interventionen von Zivilgesellschaft und internationalen Organisationen. Das Buch vermittelt so ein umfassendes Bild der Mechanismen von Korruption und der Herausforderungen, die mit ihrer Bekämpfung verbunden sind.
Aus meiner Sicht gibt es jedoch einen zentralen Kritikpunkt: Holmes berücksichtigt die Perspektive der Menschen, die direkt unter Korruption leiden, nur sehr begrenzt. Seine Analyse bleibt überwiegend „von oben“ – aus Sicht von Staaten, Behörden und Geschäftsleuten oder internationalen Indizes. Die empirische Forschung von Esther Duflo und ihren Kollegen zeigt hingegen, dass Korruption oft am besten von unten nach oben verstanden werden kann: Wer alltäglich Bestechung, Vetternwirtschaft oder bürokratische Hürden erlebt, nimmt die Dynamiken, Kosten und realen Folgen von Korruption deutlich anders wahr als statistische Messungen oder offizielle Analysen.
Vor diesem Hintergrund erscheint die klassische „Null-Toleranz“-Rhetorik problematisch. Für mich stellt sich daher die provokative Frage, ob es nicht manchmal sinnvoller wäre, bestimmte Formen von Korruption transparent und reguliertzu handhaben – eine Art „Politik der offenen Karten“. Holmes liefert die Grundlagen, um das Problem zu verstehen, doch um die Perspektive der tatsächlichen Opfer einzubeziehen und mögliche alternative Ansätze zu denken, ist die Arbeit von Duflo meiner Meinung nach unverzichtbar.
Ein aktuelles Beispiel, das diesen Gedanken illustriert, sind die Enhanced Games, eine geplante Sportveranstaltung, bei der leistungssteigernde Substanzen legal und transparent eingesetzt werden sollen. In diesem hypothetischen Szenario verschwinden die traditionellen moralischen Bewertungen von „Cheating“ und zeigen, dass die Beurteilung von Vorteilen, Macht und Fairness stark von den Regeln des Systems abhängt. Für mich verdeutlicht dies, dass Korruption nicht immer schwarz-weiß ist, sondern kontextabhängig – ein Gedanke, den Holmes’ Analyse zwar vorbereitet, aber nicht explizit entwickelt. Die Enhanced Games erscheinen so wie eine radikale praktische Variante der „Politik der offenen Karten“, die meine Reflexion über Transparenz, Fairness und Korruption inspiriert.
July 12, 2024
Political Scientist Leslie E. Holmes published Corruption: A Very Short Introduction in 2015. As the Goodreads reviewer named Perma points out, Holmes is an expert on corruption in former communist countries, so many of his examples come from former Soviet countries and Eastern Europe. The book has illustrations, tables, and an index. The book has a section on “further reading” (Holmes 127-134). The book has a section defining different acronyms. The book is about the meaning of the term corruption, defined as “corruption referring to improper behavior linked to one’s official position” (Holmes 1). The book's first chapter explains the concept of corruption and how the idea of corruption is complex to define (Holmes 1-17). The second chapter is entitled “Why corruption is a problem” (Holmes 18-35). The third chapter is on the complexity of measuring corruption. The following two chapters are on different theories on the reason for corruption in the social sciences. Chapter 6 is on how governments can limit or stop corruption. Chapter 7 discusses how businesses, civil society, and international organizations can limit corruption. Holmes seems to have mixed feelings about lobbying in the United States and other countries that should be considered corruption, and he seems to give two different answers that refer back to each other (Holmes 27-28, 79-81). The book has a section on “further I found that Holmes’ book was a thoughtful introduction to corruption studies. I found the Goodreads reviewer Perma of this book helpful in writing this ‘review.’
January 24, 2025
Це дійсно дуже короткий вступ до теми, що зрозуміло, але корупції присвячені цілі бібліотеки досліджень, зв��тів, узагальнень, аналізів і купи всього. Книга дає панорамну візію того, що є корупція, як з нею боряться чи не боряться, як треба боротися, наводяться різні приклади корупції та боротьби з нею. Загалом книга корисна для систематизації знань, але не для глибокого занурення в проблематику, саме тому автор чесний зі своїми читачами: дуже короткий вступ.
Сподобалась читата Тацита: Corruptissima re publica plurimae leges” , яку можна перекласти з латини як: «Чим більше корумпована держава, тим більше в ній законів».
Сподобалась читата Тацита: Corruptissima re publica plurimae leges” , яку можна перекласти з латини як: «Чим більше корумпована держава, тим більше в ній законів».
June 23, 2018
It is what it is - a very short introduction. There wasn't an awful lot of new information, and it talks about a bunch of stuff that seems decently obvious. However the point of the Very Short Introduction series is not to be profound, it's to give an overview so that you have the basic background you need, and this book does exactly that.
April 29, 2018
Extremely thorough, well-reasoned and fact-dense. This will be extremely valuable to anyone working on or studying corruption. I did, however, find my attention wandering quite a bit and I don't think this is entirely down to my slow and befuddled brain.
August 3, 2023
Honestly a bit annoying with the over abudance of acronyms being used but it offers an alright enough picture to start looking at the global corruption problem. Not exactly worth a read but can give directions to go deeper on the subject.
November 26, 2021
As full of data as this small a book can be. I wish it dealt with the subject more crisply : broad generalisations and less inundating data. But that’s a difficult thing to do. :)
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November 13, 2024腐败的定义（狭义与广义），探讨了可能与狭义腐败相关的各类指标，清除腐败的成本，分析了可能导致狭义腐败的各类因素（文化、制度），介绍了不少测算腐败程度的定量分析手段，列举了一些成功的反腐经验（国家做法：惩罚与激励），国际间反腐
February 20, 2016
This is a great short analysis of corruption, how it is studied, what it is, and current trends in research. The last section of the book with the list of further sources was an excellent guide for a research project I am working on and gave me a lot of further avenues for research. Anyone who is interested to learn more about corruption should check out this short introduction. It is well worth the price!
February 7, 2023
Short overview of corruption, the difficulty of defining and measuring it, why it exists, and what might be done about it. A little dry and a bit pedantic, it nevertheless gives a good high-level look at this problem and gives a list for further reading.
August 13, 2015
A good overview but a little too academic and dry.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews