“Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial
In recent years, the study of corruption has become one of the most prominent in the social sciences. If there is corruption, however, it is because something has been corrupted; something pure has been sullied. This pure element serves mainly as a normative reference: It may never have constituted...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/12/12/682 |
| _version_ | 1827573497749045248 |
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| author | Manuel Villoria |
| author_facet | Manuel Villoria |
| author_sort | Manuel Villoria |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In recent years, the study of corruption has become one of the most prominent in the social sciences. If there is corruption, however, it is because something has been corrupted; something pure has been sullied. This pure element serves mainly as a normative reference: It may never have constituted a social and political reality. However, the purpose of this article is to try to define what its components might be. In this way, theoretical considerations can be used to provide a more solid basis for the fight against corruption. The position of this paper is that the opposite of corruption should be explicitly defined without the use of abstract categories such as good governance or integrity. The paper will begin with a discussion of the concept of “non-corrupt government” and then proceed to a theoretical analysis of the main issues involved. It will conclude with some practical remarks on how to build, in the most parsimonious way, the benchmark of quality that corruption undermines. The contention is that a “non-corrupt government” is based on four principles: (1) equality (input side), (2) reasonableness (input side), (3) impartiality and professionalism of the administration (output side), and (4) accountability of the office (output side). |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:22:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7279484dc17b49c5844b0efa350b4701 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:22:04Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-7279484dc17b49c5844b0efa350b47012023-12-22T14:42:55ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602023-12-01121268210.3390/socsci12120682“Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than ImpartialManuel Villoria0Department of Public Law and Political Science, King Juan Carlos University, 28032 Madrid, SpainIn recent years, the study of corruption has become one of the most prominent in the social sciences. If there is corruption, however, it is because something has been corrupted; something pure has been sullied. This pure element serves mainly as a normative reference: It may never have constituted a social and political reality. However, the purpose of this article is to try to define what its components might be. In this way, theoretical considerations can be used to provide a more solid basis for the fight against corruption. The position of this paper is that the opposite of corruption should be explicitly defined without the use of abstract categories such as good governance or integrity. The paper will begin with a discussion of the concept of “non-corrupt government” and then proceed to a theoretical analysis of the main issues involved. It will conclude with some practical remarks on how to build, in the most parsimonious way, the benchmark of quality that corruption undermines. The contention is that a “non-corrupt government” is based on four principles: (1) equality (input side), (2) reasonableness (input side), (3) impartiality and professionalism of the administration (output side), and (4) accountability of the office (output side).https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/12/12/682corruptionnon-corrupt governmentgood governancedemocracyequalityreasonableness |
| spellingShingle | Manuel Villoria “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial Social Sciences corruption non-corrupt government good governance democracy equality reasonableness |
| title | “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial |
| title_full | “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial |
| title_fullStr | “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial |
| title_full_unstemmed | “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial |
| title_short | “Non-Corrupt Government”: Less Than Good, More Than Impartial |
| title_sort | non corrupt government less than good more than impartial |
| topic | corruption non-corrupt government good governance democracy equality reasonableness |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/12/12/682 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT manuelvilloria noncorruptgovernmentlessthangoodmorethanimpartial |