Conceptualizing corruption prevention: a systematic literature review
| Date | 02 July 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-10-2018-0106 |
| Pages | 719-745 |
| Published date | 02 July 2019 |
| Author | Nicholas Bautista-Beauchesne,César Garzon |
| Subject Matter | Financial risk/company failure,Financial crime |
Conceptualizing corruption
prevention: a systematic
literature review
Nicholas Bautista-Beauchesne and César Garzon
École nationale d’administration publique, Montréal, Canada
Abstract
Purpose –Existing reviewsabout corruption and anti-corruption have yet to treat the subject of prevention
as the main focus of inquiry. The purpose of this paper is to address this need by analyzing definitions,
theoretical underpinnings,methods and sectors of interest within published academic articles. By doing so,
the main objectiveis to clarify the theoretical and conceptualfoundations of the prevention of corruption.
Design/methodology/approach –The researchdesign consists of a systematic literature review,which
uses a keyword-string search method across relevant databases. A qualitative and quantitative coding
scheme was implementedto provide descriptive statistics.
Findings –Results show a need for methodological diversity, theoretical debate and a clarification of the
definitional foundations of corruption prevention. Specifically, the results underline a need for more interdisciplinary
collaboration between the various fields that studythe issue. To this end, a conceptualization of corruption prevention
is proposed, built around a two by two matrix, to synthesize existing definitionsand spark scholarly debate.
Practical implications –This paper contributes to the field of anti-corruption on a theoretical level by
highlighting the current strengths and weaknesses of the inroads made by the existing literature. Moreover, on a
practical research level, this paper suggests fruitful lines of inquiry to channel a rapidly expanding field of study.
Social implications –This paper underlinesthe need for corruption prevention policymakingto take note
of the broad literatureemanating from multiple social science disciplines.This paper also underlines the need
for policy implementationto consider the socio-historical context and definitionalidiosyncrasies of corruption
for policy effectiveness.
Originality/value –A core original contribution of this paper is to advance a definition and
conceptualization of corruptionprevention. Using two conceptual axes –focus and scope –preventiontools
are categorizedand analyzed to spark further scholarly debate.
Keywords Anti-corruption, Corruption, Prevention, Systematic literature review,
Corruption prevention
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction: a growing scholarly field
Corruption is a trillion-dollarinternational financial crime[1]. Cost estimations run up to $2.6
trillion a year, which represents 5 per cent of the global gross domestic product (GDP)
(Graycar and Sidebottom, 2012). To control this problem, a multitude of policies, agencies
and tools have been implementedaround the world, a rising trend that has been qualified as
an anticorruption industry, a regime or a global campaign (Sampson,2010). For example, as
detailed in the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), provisions are
included for the implementation of repressive policies to criminalize, investigate and
The authors would like to thank Dr Étienne Charbonneau for helpful comments on previous versions,
as well as the École Nationale d’Administration Publique for financial support. All shortcomings
belong to the authors.
Systematic
literature
review
719
Journalof Financial Crime
Vol.26 No. 3, 2019
pp. 719-745
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1359-0790
DOI 10.1108/JFC-10-2018-0106
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/1359-0790.htm
prosecute corruption, as well as preventive policies aimed at intervening proactively
(UNODC, 2004).
Previous literature reviews have focused on definitions of corruption, its various effects
or its various forms in specific sectors(Bardhan, 1997;Kaufmann, 1997;Jain, 2001;Johnston,
2012). Similarly, reviews on anti-corruption have focused on the different strategies and
tools that have been implemented (Lange, 2008;Dischet al., 2009). The study of corruption
prevention, however, is found wanting. The subject is often treated in a cursory manner,
such as subsection in the various anticorruption options. This eclipsing can be partially
explained by two specific reasons. First, much of scholarly work on corruption repression
has dominated the literature foreground. Indeed, the highly politicized nature of this issue
has focused attention on the criminalization of offenders and the prosecutorial aspects of
anticorruption policies (Mungiu-Pippidi, 2015). Second, multiple disciplines currently study
the issue of corruption such as publicadministration, criminology, management or political
science: typically, they have developed specific sub-strands of literature such as
accountability,risk management or audits. Hence, the scope of these lines of inquiry extends
farther than the issueof corruption, thus relegating prevention to a secondary consideration.
Considering these trends, two reasons motivate the need for a systematic review of the
academic contributions on corruptionprevention. First, on a theoretical level, this method is
ideal to centralize and synthesize the dispersed and variegated literature on corruption
prevention. Second, on a more empirical level, severalscholars have recently underlined the
importance of corruption prevention as a key long-term policy pillar (Graycar and
Sidebottom, 2012;Scott, 2013;Mungiu-Pippidi, 2015;Scott and Gong, 2015). This prompts
the need for a clarification of the conceptual foundations of corruption prevention to inform
future policy instrumentsand tools.
Hence, two specific objectivesare pursued by this systematic literaturereview:
(1) to provide an overview and appraisal of the extent of academic and scholarly
knowledge on corruption prevention; and
(2) to clarify the theoretical and conceptual foundations of the prevention of
corruption.
To this end, several researchquestions were established to guide this paper:
RQ1. How is corruption prevention defined and conceptualized in the academic
literature?
RQ2. How is corruption prevention studied (i.e. theories, methodsand methodologies)?
RQ3. What empirical evidence has been accumulated in the study of corruption
prevention (i.e. impacts/conditions of success)?
The article is organizedas follows. First, a methodological section detailshow the systematic
literature review was conducted, including the keyword string process, the inclusion and
exclusioncriteria and the coding procedures.Second, the analysis ofthe collected literature is
presented. A lack of theoretical and conceptual consensus is noted which overshadows the
field significantly. However, building on the progress made thus far, this paper proposes a
conceptualization of corruption prevention by synthesizing the sparse definitions found in
the collectedliterature. Herein liesa core contribution of thispaper. The suggested conceptual
matrix intends to encourage further debate between otherwise independently advancing
social science disciplines. Finally, a discussion section provides an overview of the results
presented,research caveats and proposesfuture research opportunities.
JFC
26,3
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