Variation in Corruption Between Mexican States Elaborating the Gender Perspective

Abstract

Dollar et al. (2001) sparked off research on gender and corruption. They showed, in a cross-country comparative study, that a high number of women in elected office is related to a low level of corruption. Whether there is a causal relationship is, however, disputed. Sung (2003) has argued that modern liberal democracy is the driving force behind a high number of women elected, as well as government accountability. This paper focuses on subnational variation in Mexico. Data from Transparency International indicate that corruption is ten times more likely to occur in requesting or receiving public services in the state most hit by corruption than in the state least affected. There is also considerable variation in the numbers of women elected, and the subnational analysis confirms previous cross-country findings: states with a high number of women elected tend to display lower levels of corruption than states with a low number of women elected. The Mexican case strengthens the idea that there are important links between gender and corruption. This paper launches a “rationality perspective,” arguing that when calculating costs and benefits, women more often than men choose to abstain from corrupt behavior.