Corruption is a serious threat to prosperity, democracy and human well-being, with mounting empirical evidence highlighting its detrimental effects on society. Yet defining this threat has resulted in profound disagreement, producing a multidimensional concept. Tackling this important and provocative topic, the authors provide an accessible and systematic analysis of how our understanding of corruption has evolved. They identify gaps in the research and make connections between related concepts such as clientelism, patronage, patrimonialism, particularism and state capture. A fundamental issue discussed is how the opposite of corruption should be defined. By arguing for the possibility of a universal understanding of corruption, and specifically what corruption is not, an innovative solution to this problem is presented. This book provides an accessible overview of corruption, allowing scholars and students alike to see the far reaching place it has within academic research.

Making Sense of Corruption is published by Cambridge University Press in February.

Speakers include:

• Bo Rothstein, Professor of Government and Public Policy, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford and co-author of the book
• Aiysha Varraich, University of Gothenburg, Sweden and co-author of the book
• Attahiru Jega, Africa Initiative for Governance Visiting Fellow of Practice, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford
• Mohamed Amersi, CEO and co-founder of Emergent Telecom Ventures

The talk is free and open to all. To attend, please register here.

The event will be live streamed and recorded on the Blavatnik School of Government YouTube channel.