The effect of the Internet on corruption awareness and corruption incidence in the EU

Abstract

It is obvious that the Internet connection brings several unquestionable benefits to people and society. However, not all of them can be seen at first sight. This study examines the potential effect of Internet usage on corruption awareness as well as experience with corruption and actual reporting of corruption cases. We conducted mainly IV probit and 2SLS regression based on the data from the Eurobarometer survey. We have found that intensity of Internet usage seems to be a significant factor affecting respondents’ knowledge about where to report the corruption. Internet usage appears to have a positive effect on the accuracy of corruption extent estimation in a country. Moreover, our results strongly suggest that those using the Internet frequently are more likely to report experiences of corruption. In line with this result, promoting of Internet usage and enabling Internet access can be seen as a potential anti-corruption tool. Our findings have several important implications for anti-corruption and bribery policies. Due to the fact that especially the initial installation cost proves to be the essential problem, the effective strategy should also include the subsidies for Internet access.