The nexus between corruption and academic freedom: An international examination using mediation analysis

Authors

• Salvatore Capasso, University of Naples - Parthenope, Italy
• Rajeev K. Goel, Illinois State University
• James W. Saunoris, Eastern Michigan University

Document Type

Report or White Paper

Publication Date

2022

Department/School

Economics

Abstract

Studying a relatively under-researched aspect in economics, this paper examines the nexus between corruption and academic freedom. Our main hypothesis is that greater corruption undermines academic freedom and we test this hypothesis using cross-national data for 104 nations over the years 2012 to 2018. Our results support the main hypothesis, and this finding also generally holds across alternative aspects of academic freedom. Another contribution of this work lies in dissecting the direct and indirect (through corruption) effects of various drivers of academic freedom. Finally, additional insights are gained via considering different dimensions of academic freedom and how they are (qualitatively and quantitatively) impacted by corruption.

Comments

J. W. Saunoris is a faculty member in EMU's Department of Economics.

Recommended Citation

Capasso, S., Goel, R. K., & Saunoris, J. W. (2022). The nexus between corruption and academic freedom: An international examination using mediation analysis (Working Paper No. 9890). CESifo Working Paper. https://hdl.handle.net/10419/265925