Research on Corruption and Its Control

Corruption occurs in all parts of the world. More than US$ 1 trillion is paid in bribes every year, according to estimates by the World Bank Institute, and the costs of corruption in the developing world have reached approximately US$80 billion annually. Corruption significantly deters the development of markets, discourages investment, increases costs, reduces competitiveness, increases uncertainty, undermines the rule of law, and weakens the institutional foundations on which economic growth depends.

Increased global attention to the issue of corruption, and a growing concern among organizations looking for solutions to the problem, have opened up new avenues of inquiry. The sharing of knowledge, particularly experiences of what works, what doesn’t, and why, can help prevent duplication of effort and repetition of mistakes.

To address this need, the CSIS-Hills Program on Governance, jointly with the World Bank Institute and the Wharton School of Business, brought together leading academics on corruption for a workshop entitled “Research on Corruption and Its Control: The State of the Art.” The event took place in Philadelphia at the Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania on March 3rd and 4th, 2006.