Individual-Level Determinants of Corruption Perception in Five Areas of Public Life in Sweden Evidence from 2022 SOM Survey

Abstract

Corruption perceptions are not only shared social norms shaped by societal dynamics, but they also reflections of individual experiences, values, and viewpoints. This study examines the relationship between a set of individual- and community-level factors and perceptions of corruption, using the data from a nationwide survey in Sweden. We analyze the drivers of corruption perceptions among Swedish citizens across five key areas of public life: politicians, civil servants, police, public healthcare, and foreign aid. Our findings reveals that Swedish citizens hold sector specific perceptions of corruption – rather than singular and unified – with the foreign aid perceived as the most corrupt sector and healthcare as the least corrupt. Only a few factors exhibit a statistically significant impact on corruption perception across all five areas, reinforcing our main finding that there are varieties of corruption perceptions rather than a singular, unified view of corruption in the public sector