Introduction: Overview of Major Types of Fraud and Corruption
Corruption is defined as “the misuse of power to obtain an unlawful advantage” (Hetzer, 2012, p. 228). Corruption can be found in all sectors of a society, including government agencies, businesses, corporations, educational institutions, medical institut
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troduction Corruption is broadly defined as the misuse of power to obtain an illegitimate gain. It occurs when one who has the power performs an illegal act to determine the outcome of some matter such as a financial matter (obtaining a contract), a political matter (bribing a political official), or a personal matter (obtaining rewards of a sexual nature) to obtain benefits not deserved. Corruption may involve the commission of a variety of act defined as criminal, such as bribery, extortion, graft, embezzlement, and various forms of fraud. Acts such as patronage or influence peddling are widely practiced by many who hold political offices. These acts are illegal because they are outside the scope of their official duties. Prenzler, Beckley, & Bronitt (2013) use the term gray corruption when referring to those borderline acts committed by public officials such as accepting small gifts or tickets to a sporting event, padding an expense account, influence peddling, or receiving a discount from restaurants. Prenzler et al. (2013) emphasize that even in those cases in which the amount of money or value of the gifts involved in the corrupt transaction may be small, the process is harmful since, if widespread, it tends to undermine the public’s confidence in the honesty of public officials. Hetzer (2012, p. 219), in reference to the European Community, uses the term passive corruption. He states, “According to the Convention on the Protection of the Communities’ Financial Interests, the deliberate action of an official, who directly or through an intermediary requests or receives advantages of any kind whatsoever, for himself or for a third party, or accepts a promise of such an advantage, to act or refrain from acting in accordance with his duty or in the exercise of his functions in breach of his official duties in a way that damages the European Community’s financial interests constitutes passive corruption.” P. C. Kratcoski (*) Department of Sociology and Justice Studies, Kent State University, Kent, OH, USA e-mail: [email protected] © Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 P. C. Kratcoski, M. Edelbacher (eds.), Fraud and Corruption, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92333-8_1
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P. C. Kratcoski
To engage in a corrupt act, a person must be motivated and capable and have the opportunity to commit the act. Those who hold positions of authority and power, such as political figures, public service personnel, police, correctional officers, corporation executives, and officials in religious organizations generally will have the opportunity and ability to engage in acts of corruption if so motivated. The opportunities for those employed in any public and private organizations or enterprises to engage in corruption is closely related to the political, economic, legal, and social systems and the culture of a society. For example, in a society where there are weak controls and enforcement of the laws pertaining to corruption, contempt of the laws by those engaging in corrupt acts may occur if t
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