Extending a Hand: Corruption and Solidarity with the Less Privileged Domestically and Beyond

Area of Science:

• Social Sciences
• Sociology
• Political Science

Background:

• Social cohesion is often studied through generalized social trust.
• Norms of social solidarity, a key dimension of social cohesion, are under-researched.
• Corruption's impact on social solidarity requires further investigation across diverse societal contexts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the association between micro-perceptions of corruption and social solidarity (domestic and global).
• To examine how this association varies across countries with different corruption types and forms.
• To explore the role of generalized social trust in understanding social solidarity.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) Citizenship II survey.
• Included a sample of 33 countries for cross-national analysis.
• Employed multilevel regression models to analyze individual perceptions and country-level variations.

Main Results:

• The relationship between corruption perceptions and global solidarity is context-dependent.
• In highly corrupt countries (per Corruption Perception Index), the link is weak and positive.
• In relatively corruption-free countries, the link is strong and negative.
• Domestic solidarity showed a weak positive association with corruption perceptions, with no significant contextual variation.

Conclusions:

• Micro-perceptions of corruption have a significant, context-dependent impact on global solidarity.
• Societal corruption levels moderate the relationship between individual corruption beliefs and global solidarity.
• Further research should explore the mechanisms driving these context-specific associations and their implications for social cohesion.