Gender and Corruption: new questions for improving anti-corruption policies

Abstract

This panel will explore new questions about the relationship between gender and corruption and discuss the implications of this relationship for anti-corruption policies. Corruption is a widespread problem that undermines the integrity of societies and erodes public trust in government institutions, while gender inequality continues to be a persistent challenge worldwide. The very first studies regarding gender and corruption, led by the World Bank, showed a relationship between more gender equality and less corruption. Since then, many studies have tried to explain this relationship. Four main explanations dominate the literature: the social role of women (Dollar et al., 2001; Swamy et al., 2001), opportunity structures for genders (marginalization) (Goetz 2007), differences in risk aversion (Esarey & Schwindt-Bayer, 2017; Bauhr et al., 2019), and women’s state dependence (Stensöta et al., 2015; Alexander et al., 2019). These arguments suggest that improving gender equality could help in the fight against corruption. However, the empirical evidence is mixed (Alexander, 2018), and new data about corruption could reveal new insights (Esarey and Valdes, 2019; Bjarnegård et al., 2018), and uncover new relationships between gender and corruption. The panel will bring together academics from various social science disciplines to comprehensively examine gender and corruption. The discussions will focus on the gendered dimensions of corruption, including how women, men, and different communities are affected by corruption differently. The panel will also consider how corruption perpetuates gender inequality and undermines the efforts of women to achieve gender equality. It will also be a forum for participants to discuss the new questions and approaches needed to tackle corruption effectively, considering the specific challenges women and marginalized groups face. In particular, the following topics will be addressed: ▪️ The impact of corruption on gender equality and how corruption perpetuates gender inequality. ▪️ The gendered dimensions of corruption, including the different ways in which women, men, and different communities are affected by corruption. ▪️ The role of gender in shaping attitudes towards corruption and how gender affects the perception and experience of corruption. ▪️ The intersection of gender and corruption in different cultural, social, and political contexts and how these intersections shape the dynamics of corruption. ▪️ The effectiveness of anti-corruption policies that take into account the specific challenges faced by women and marginalized groups and the need for gender-sensitive and responsive anti-corruption policies. ▪️ The role of women in preventing and combating corruption and how the participation and leadership of women can contribute to more effective anti-corruption efforts.

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