Gender and Corruption: The Mediating Power of Institutional Logics

Abstract

Scholars have argued that recruiting more women to office is an effective way to curb corruption; however, the more precise mechanisms underlying why this may be the case have remained unclear. We use meso-level theories to elaborate on the relationship and suggest that institutional logics mediate the effect of gendered experiences on corruption. We make two propositions: First, we suggest that the relationship between more women and lower levels of corruption is weaker in the state administration than in the legislative arena, because the bureaucratic administrative logic absorbs actors' personal characteristics. Second, we refine our institutional argument by claiming that the stronger the bureaucratic principles are in the administration, the less gender matters. We validate our theory using data provided by the European Commission (EC) covering the EC countries and original data from the Quality of Government Institute Expert Surveys, covering a larger set of countries on a worldwide scale. The ArgumentCorruption, or the act of using public power for private ends, can be considered a major destructive force for humans and human societies. Research has shown that corruption is one of the most detrimental factors currently afflicting the economies of developing countries. It further undercuts various dimensions of human well-being, such as health, access to clean water, and education as well as negatively affects subjective dimensions such as human subjective well-being and happiness (Halleröd et al. 2012;Rothstein and Holmberg 2012;Swaroop and Rajkumar 2002). Moreover, corruption may have deeper destabilizing consequences in society, as it arguably threatens not only the direct output of government, but also its prerequisite: people's willingness to pay taxes. Its negative consequences are further not isolated to developing countries, but also concern developed countries. In a recent study, Stefan Svallfors (2013) compare attitudes toward taxes and social spending across European countries and conclude that the organization of government affects people's judgments of how well government works (absence of corruption), which in turn affects their preparedness to pay taxes, leading to long-term consequences for possibilities to pursue encompassing welfare state policy. Hence, as an overview by Treisman (2007) shows, a vast body of research confirms how serious the problem of corruption is perceived to be.There are clear correlations between gender and corruption. On the one hand, women suffer disproportionately from the effects of corruption, as women are overrepresented among the world's poor. 1 On the other hand, women themselves, compared to men, tend to be less involved in corrupt transactions. There is a growing body of gender and corruption research exploring the relationships between higher

Exclusion or interests? Why females in elected office reduce petty and grand corruption

“…More recent studies have convincingly shown that the correlation between the proportion of women in parliament and national levels of corruption is stronger in democracies than in authoritarian states (Esarey & Chirillo 2013) and that, even within democracies, the correlation is stronger within the electoral arena than in other branches of government (Stensöta et al 2015). Contemporary research on the link between women's representation and levels of corruption tends to follow and expand on the suggestion by Swamy et al (2001) that women reduce corruption since they are, on average, more riskaverse than men.…”

Restoring trust in the police: Why female officers reduce suspicions of corruption

“… Beyond decreasing corruption, several countries across Latin America have established women's police units to improve reporting of crimes against women, offer support to female victims, and to raise awareness around women's security issues (UN Women, ). If laws are passed to protect underrepresented groups such as women or minorities, this may engender citizen trust in the government (Swamy et al, ; Stensöta et al, ; Watson & Moreland, ). Thus, to the extent that women are recruited into police forces to protect the rights of women, the representation of women's interests may serve as a fourth possible mechanism through which increases in female police officers improve perceptions of corruption.…”

Corruption and women in cabinets: Informal barriers to recruitment in the executive

“… For an exception, see Stensöta, Wängnerud, and Svensson (), who focus on officials in bureaucracies.…”

“…For an exception, seeStens€ ota, Wängnerud, and Svensson (2015), who focus on officials in bureaucracies.2 Corruption might also have an indirect negative influence, in that it affects women's resources to compete for office Stockemer (2011). pinpoints that corrupt societies grant fewer educational and financial opportunities to women and, therefore, tend to have a smaller pool of eligible female candidates (see alsoGoetz, 2003).…”