Why are individuals unwilling to report corruption? An inquiry into perception-based definitions of corruption and employment-related factors

Abstract

Despite the increasing interest and investment in whistle-blowing regulations, policies, and mechanisms, people are still hesitant to report corruption. The existing literature explaining what deters people from reporting serious wrongdoing predominantly concentrates on either organisational factors or personal motivations. Only a limited number of studies integrate objective and subjective individual-level constraints on whistle-blowing. Using original survey data from Portugal, this article investigates two sets of individual-level factors that explain the reluctance to report corruption: employment-related characteristics (objective constraints) and perception-based definitions of corruption (subjective constraints). A regression analysis of the survey data reveals that individuals working in the private sector are less inclined to report corruption compared to public officials. This finding underscores the significance of job security in influencing people's willingness to report corruption. The results also indicate that individuals with a minimalist definition of corruption, perceiving it solely as a legal offence, are more hesitant to report corruption. This finding supports the notion that whistle-blowing policies should not be limited to reporting blatant legal violations instead of any suspected wrongdoing of corporate or public significance. Our study emphasises the need for whistle-blowing policies to not only establish secure and visible mechanisms for reporting serious wrongdoing within organisations, but also to raise awareness of how social norms and job security can impact individuals’ decisions to report such occurrences. This article contributes to whistle-blowing and governance research by shedding light on how perception-based definitions and judgements of corruption, as well as employment-related factors, can influence individuals’ willingness or unwillingness to report corruption.

Points for practitioners

• Job precariousness and limited understanding of corruption are two key factors that limit individuals’ willingness to report corruption.
• Policies and measures aimed at improving work conditions and ethical climate within organisations may be more effective in encouraging whistle-blowing than solely improving formal reporting mechanisms.
• Further research is needed to explore individual-level factors for reporting corruption in different types of organisations and sectors, along with more specific information about whistle-blowing policies and mechanisms.
• Implementing effective whistle-blowing policies and mechanisms requires not only adopting laws but also creating the institutional conditions and motivating individuals to report corruption, which may require commitment and contextual knowledge from top leadership.