Our next SPARC seminar on November 2 will feature a presentation by Manoel Gehrke entitled "Convictions for Corruption and Government Approval: Global Evidence”.

As usual, the seminar will be in a hybrid format (Room 2 and Zoom: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/my/crpereira).

Title: Convictions for Corruption and Government Approval: Global Evidence

Authors: Manoel Gehrke and Feng Yang

Abstract: This study investigates the political effects of punishing corruption at high levels of government. Using an original dataset of corruption convictions and annual, nationally representative surveys covering over 130 countries from 2006 to 2019, we show that the impact of convicting former heads of government on citizens' approval of government is contingent upon the level of democracy. In countries with lower levels of democracy, convictions strengthen government approval, while their effect is negligible in more democratic nations. We shed light on an underlying mechanism that explains these divergent effects by providing evidence that suggests how the level of democracy influences the responses adopted by incumbent governments. In less democratic contexts, governments exploit corruption convictions by emphasizing the personal virtues of their leaders, rather than acknowledging the significance of rational-legal procedures. These circumstances can potentially contribute to the rise of personalism and the erosion of democratic processes.