The asterisk (*) connotes definitions from non-USIP outside sources
Accountability: The notion that individuals who commit crimes against humanity should be held accountable for their actions, either by the state they occurred in or by the international community. Political accountability means the responsibility or obligation of government to act in the best interests of society. Legal accountability concerns the mechanisms by which public officials can be held liable for actions that go against established rules and principles.
Autocracy: A system of government in which a single person has the authority and power to rule over others in a relatively defined boundary or territory.
* Bribery: Bribery is the act of offering someone money, services or other valuables, in order to persuade him or her to do something in return. Bribery is corruption by definition. Bribes are also called kickbacks, baksheesh, payola, hush money, sweetener, protection money, boodle, gratuity, etc. Bribery is widely criminalized through international and national laws. Active bribery refers to the offense committed by the person who promises or gives the bribe; as contrasted to “passive bribery,” which is the offense committed by the official who receives the bribe.
* Checks and Balances: Usually refer to the institutional mechanisms for preventing power abuse. Often, they are constitutional controls whereby the three branches of government (executive, legislative and judiciary) and other state institutions have powers over each other so that no single branch will dominate.
Civil Society: A collective term for nongovernmental, mostly non-profit groups that help their society at large function while working to advance their own or others’ well -being. It can include civic, educational, trade, labor, charitable, media, religious, recreational, cultural, and advocacy groups. A strong civil society, or “public space,” can protect individuals and groups against intrusive government. Some definitions do not consider the media, most of which is for profit, to be part of civil society but rather a tool that can promote civil society.
* Corruption: While there is not a universally recognized definition of corruption, many practitioners in the field use Transparency International’s definition, or “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain.” In international law, a person commits the criminal act of corruption when he or she “promises, offers, or gives” undue benefits to a public official “in order that the public official act or refrain from acting in the exercise of his or her official duties.” If a public official solicits or accepts such an undue advantage, that also counts as corruption.
Democracy: A state or community in which all members of society partake in a free and fair electoral process that determines government leadership, have access to power through their representatives, and enjoy universally recognized freedoms and liberties. Democracy building or democratization is the exercise of consolidating and strengthening institutions that help to support democratic government. These institutions may relate to rule of law initiatives, political party development, constitution building, public administration development, and civil society education programs.
Development: In general, development is the process of improving people’s lives. Originally, the term focused on the goal of greater economic prosperity and opportunity. But it now typically includes efforts at human development that take into account such issues as governance, education, the environment, and human rights.
Elections: The process by which citizens typically choose their representatives to the legislature and sometimes to the executive and judiciary branches. Voting systems vary widely, but most are either proportional or majoritarian. It is important to note that holding elections is only one part of democracy building.
* Embezzlement: The misappropriation of property or funds legally entrusted to someone in their formal position as an agent or guardian.
Failed State: A state that is unable to provide its citizens basic services, often because of war, genocide, corruption, mismanagement, or criminal threats. Some analysts use the term collapsed state to refer to a situation where national structures have essential y dissolved and there is a complete vacuum of authority. Conversely, a weak or fragile state may be on the verge of failure because of instability and weak governance.
* Favoritism: Refers to the normal human inclination to prefer acquaintances, friends, and family over strangers. It is not always, then, a form of corruption. However, when public (and private sector) officials demonstrate favoritism to unfairly distribute positions and resources, they are guilty of cronyism or nepotism, depending on their relationship with the person who benefits.
Foreign Aid: A technique of economic statecraft where aid is used as an instrument of policy in order to achieve certain goals. There are three main types of foreign aid—humanitarian, military, and development.
Governance: The exercise of authority to implement rules and policies in an effort to bring order to the social, political, economic, and judicial processes that allow a society to develop. Good governance involves a process that is informed and to a degree monitored by, and ultimately serves, all members of society, including civil society groups. Good governance also implies a level of accountability and transparency, both of which will help to ameliorate the risk of corruption, a corrosive and destabilizing practice.
* Grand Corruption: High level or "grand" corruption takes place at the policy formulation end of politics. It refers not so much to the amount of money involved as to the level at which it occurs, where policies and rules may be unjustly influenced. The kinds of transactions that attract grand corruption are usually large in scale and therefore involve more money than bureaucratic or "petty" corruption. Grand corruption is sometimes used synonymously with political corruption.
Instability: A situation in which tension and suspicion among parties run high, but violence is either absent or only sporadic. A “negative peace” prevails because, although armed force is not deployed, the parties perceive one another as enemies and maintain deterrent military capabilities. A balance of power may discourage aggression, but crisis and war are still possible.
* Nepotism: Usually used to indicate a form of favoritism that involves family relationships. It describes situations in which a person exploits his or her power and authority to procure jobs or other favors for relatives. Nepotism can take place at all levels of the state, from low-level bureaucratic offices to national ministries.
Oligarchy: A system of government in which authority and power over a relatively defined boundary or territory are concentrated among a small group of persons, clan, class, or clique.
Peacebuilding: Originally conceived in the context of post-conflict recovery efforts to promote reconciliation and reconstruction, the term peacebuilding has more recently taken on a broader meaning. It may include providing humanitarian relief, protecting human rights, ensuring security, establishing non-violent modes of resolving conflicts, fostering reconciliation, providing trauma-healing services, repatriating refugees and resettling internal y displaced persons, and aiding in economic reconstruction. As such, it also includes conflict prevention in the sense of preventing the recurrence of violence, as well as conflict management and post-conflict recovery. In a larger sense, peacebuilding involves a transformation toward more manageable, peaceful relationships and governance structures—the long-term process of addressing root causes and effects, reconciling differences, and normalizing relations.
* Patronage: Refers to the support or sponsorship of a patron (wealthy or influential guardian). Patronage is used, for instance, to make appointments to government jobs, promotions, contracts for work, etc. Most patrons are motivated by the desire to gain power, wealth, and status through their behavior. Patronage transgresses the boundaries of legitimate political influence, and violates the principles of merit and competition.
* Petty Corruption: The everyday corruption that takes place where bureaucrats meet the public directly. It’s a form of corruption which is pursued by junior or mid-level agents who may be grossly underpaid and who depend on relatively small but illegal rents to feed and house their families and pay for their children's education. Petty corruption disproportionately hurts the poorest members of society, who may experience requests for bribes regularly in their encounters with public administration and services like hospitals, schools, local licensing authorities, police, taxing authorities, and so on.
* Political Corruption: The term "political corruption" is conceptualized in various ways through the recent literature on corruption. In some instances, it is used synonymously with "grand" or high-level corruption and refers to the misuse of entrusted power by political leaders. In others, it refers specifically to corruption within the political and electoral processes. In both cases, political corruption not only leads to the misallocation of resources, but it also perverts the manner in which decisions are made.
Post-conflict Recovery: Also known as post-conflict reconstruction and war-to-peace transitions: The long-term rebuilding of a society in the aftermath of violent conflict. It includes political, socioeconomic, and physical aspects such as disarming and reintegrating combatants, resettling internally displaced persons, reforming governmental institutions, promoting trauma work and reconciliation, delivering justice, restarting the economy, and rebuilding damaged infrastructure. The term “recovery” has a broader connotation than reconstruction, which implies an emphasis on physical aspects.
Power: The ability to influence others to get the outcomes one wants. It may involve coercing them with threats, inducing them with payments, or co-opting them. Hard power refers to the use of military and economic means to influence the behavior of others through coercion or inducements. Soft power refers to the ability to attract or co-opt others through one’s values, policies, and performance to “want what you want,” in Joseph Nye’s words. The term smart power encompasses both hard and soft power, emphasizing the need to employ whatever tools— diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal, and cultural—are appropriate for the situation.
Power Sharing: A system of governance in which all major segments of society are provided a permanent share of power. Traditionally, that has meant coalition governments; protection of minority rights; decentralization of power; and decision making by consensus. Because of its emphasis on group rights and consensus, power sharing can lead to deadlock, so some analysts argue that it should be seen as a short-term measure that helps prepare a society for the transition to multiethnic parties.
* Public Official: As defined in international law, a public official is a “person who holds a legislative, executive, administrative, or judicial office” (appointed or elected). It also includes a person who “performs a public function” or provides a public service.
Rule of Law: A principle of governance in which all persons and institutions, public and private, including the state itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly announced, equally enforced and independently adjudicated, and consistent with international human rights norms and standards. The drafting of laws must be transparent, and they must be applied fairly and without arbitrariness. In addition, all persons must have access to justice—the ability to seek and obtain a remedy through informal or formal institutions of justice.
Social Contract: The notion that individuals and nation-states tacitly agree to a set of mutually binding stipulations and obligations. The social contract has long served as a philosophical foundation for understanding modern conceptions of citizenship and constitutionalism, whereby individuals willingly submit some of their personal freedoms to political authority in return for the general benefit of all members of a given society.
* Systemic Corruption: Occurs when corruption is an integrated and essential aspect of the economic, social and political system. Systemic corruption is not a special category of corrupt practice, but rather a situation in which the major institutions and processes of the state are routinely dominated and used by corrupt individuals and groups, and in which most people have no alternatives to dealing with corrupt officials.
* Transparency: Visibility or accessibility of information regarding government decision making and financial practices, such that stakeholders not only have access to the decision making process but also the ability to influence it. Transparency is considered an essential element of accountable governance, leading to improved resource allocation, enhanced efficiency, and better prospects for economic growth in general.
(* These entries are from the U4 Corruption Resource Centre Web site, used with permission.) Discussion and Investigation Activities