The Oxford Handbook of the Quality of Government (Oxford Handbooks)

Recent research demonstrates that the quality of public institutions is crucial for a number of important environmental, social, economic, and political outcomes, and thereby human well-being. The Quality of Government (QoG) approach directs attention to issues such as impartiality in the exercise of public power, professionalism in public service delivery, effective measures against corruption, and meritocracy instead of patronage and nepotism. This Handbook offers a comprehensive, state-of-the-art overview of this rapidly expanding research field and also identifies viable avenues for future research. The initial chapters focus on theoretical approaches and debates, and the central question of how QoG can be measured. A second set of chapters examines the wealth of empirical research on how QoG relates to democratization, social trust and cohesion, ethnic diversity, happiness and human wellbeing, democratic accountability, economic growth and inequality, political legitimacy, environmental sustainability, gender equality, and the outbreak of civil conflicts. The remaining chapters turn to the perennial issue of which contextual factors and policy approaches―national, local, and international―have proven successful (and not so successful) for increasing QoG. The Quality of Government approach both challenges and complements important strands of inquiry in the social sciences. For research about democratization, QoG adds the importance of taking state capacity into account. For economics, the QoG approach shows that in order to produce economic prosperity, markets need to be embedded in institutions with a certain set of qualities. For development studies, QoG emphasizes that issues relating to corruption are integral to understanding development writ large. Contents List of Figures List of Tables List of Contributors xiii Introduction: Quality of Government: Why—What—How • Andreas Bågenholm, Monika Bauhr, Marcia Grimes, and Bo Rothstein PART I: THEORY AND CONCEPTUALIZATION 1. Quality of Government: Theory and Conceptualization • Bo Rothstein 2. The Universalization of Ethical Universalism • Alina Mungiu- Pippidi 3. “Quality of Government”: A Philosophical Assessment • Nikolas Kirby and Jonathan Wolff 4. Shadow Elites: Beyond Institutional Corruption Theory and Ill-Conceived Anticorruption Regimes and Toward A New Research Agenda • Janine R. Wedel PART II: DATA AND METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES 5. Measuring the Unmeasurable? Taking Stock of QoG Measures • Nicholas Charron 6. Down- to- Earth. What Can We Learn from Local Case Studies? • Eliška Drápalová 7. What Can We Learn about Corruption from Historical Case Studies? • Mark Knights 8. The Ethnographic Study of Corruption • Davide Torsello PART III: DEMOCRACY, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND PARTICIPATION 9. Democracy and the Quality of Government • Monika Bauhr and Marcia Grimes 10. Electoral Accountability and Corruption • Andreas Bågenholm 11. Quality of Government and Political Support • Jonas Linde and Stefan Dahlberg 12. Trust, Populism, and the Quality of Government • Philip Keefer, Carlos Scartascini, and Razvan Vlaicu 13. Social Accountability and Quality of Government: Effectiveness and Recursive Effects • Frida Boräng and Marcia Grimes 14. Civil Society against Corruption • Donatella Della Porta and Alice Mattoni 15. Electoral Rules and Corruption: A Meta-Analysis • Georgios Xezonakis and Stephen Dawson PART IV: SUSTAINABILITYAND DEVELOPMENT 16. Inequality and Corruption • Jong- Sung You 17. The Quality of Government and Economic Growth • Pelle Ahlerup, Thushyanthan Baskaran, and Arne Bigsten 18. Economic Diversification, Homogeneity of Interests, and the Impartiality of Government • Petrus Olander 19. Quality of Government and Environmental Sustainability • Marina Povitkina and Simon Matti 20. Inequality, Education, and Corruption • Eric M. Uslaner PART V: INTERNATIONAL POLICIES AND GLOBAL STRATEGIES 21. Foreign Aid and Quality of Government 449Simone Dietrich and Matthew S. Winters 22. Corruption, Elites, and Power: An Overview of InternationalPolicy Efforts to Improve the Quality of Government 472Francis Fukuyama and Francesca Recanatini 23. International Efforts to Combat Corruption 495Mathis Lohaus and Ellen Gutterman 24. Controlling Corruption: Institutional Strategies 516Michael Johnston PART VI: DIVERSITY, SOCIAL COHESION, AND WELL-BEING 25. Quality of Government and Social Trust • Peter Thisted Dinesen and Kim Mannemar Sønderskov 26. Gender, Gender Equality, and Corruption: A Review of Theory and Evidence • Amy C. Alexander 27. Bringing Politics Back In: Ethnic Fractionalization, Quality of Government, and Public Goods Provision Revisited • Anna Persson 28. Happiness and the Quality of Government • John F. Helliwell, Haifang Huang, and Shun Wang 29. Governance Beyond the State: Social Institutions and Service Delivery • Ruth Carlitz and Ellen Lust PART VII: STATE STRUCTURE AND POLICY 30. Bureaucracy and Government Quality • Carl Dahlström and Victor Lapuente 31. Pockets of Effectiveness and Islands of Integrity: Variation in Quality of Government within Central State Administrations • Erin Metz Mcdonnell and Luiz Vilaça 32. Improving Governance in Tightly Controlled Societies: The Importance of Transformational Leadership • Robert I. Rotberg 33. Taxation and the Quality of Government • Steven M. Karceski and Edgar Kiser 34. Quality of Government and Welfare State Support • Staffan Kumlin PART VIII: STATE-BUILDING AND BREAKDOWN 35. The Challenge of State- Building in Historical Perspective: How States Are Built Critically Affects Political Development and Quality of Government • Sheri Berman 36. State Capacity, Quality of Government, Sequencing, and Development Outcomes • Michelle D’arcy and Marina Nistotskaya 37. The Quality of Government and Civil Conflict • Annekatrin Deglow and Hanne Fjelde 38. Organized Crime and the Quality of Government • Leslie Holmes Index Recent research demonstrates that the quality of public institutions are crucial for a number of important environmental, social, economic, and political outcomes, and thereby human well-being. The Quality of Government (QoG) approach directs attention to issues such as impartiality in the exercise of public power, professionalism in public service delivery, effective measures against corruption, and meritocracy instead of patronage and nepotism in the hiring of public sector employees. This handbook offer a comprehensive, state of the art overview of this rapidly expanding research field and also identifies viable avenues for future research. The initial chapters focus on theoretical approaches and debates, and the central question of how QoG can be measured. The remaining chapters examine the wealth of empirical research on how QoG relates to democratization, social cohesion, ethnic diversity, human wellbeing, democratic accountability, economic growth, political legitimacy, environmental sustainability, gender quality, and the outbreak of civil conflicts. These chapters bring evidence to bear to examine, for example, questions of the effect of QoG on subjective well-being (i.e. happiness), social trust and inequality. A third set of chapters turns to the perennial issue of which contextual factors and policy approaches, both national, local and international, have proven successful (and not so successful) for increasing QoG. The Quality of Government approach both challenges and complements important strands of inquiry in the social sciences. For research about democratization, QoG adds the importance of taking state capacity into account. For economics, the QoG approach shows that in order to produce economic prosperity, markets need to be embedded in institutions with a certain set of qualities. For development studies, QoG emphasizes that issues about corruption are integral to understanding development writ large Recent research demonstrates that the quality of public institutions is crucial for a number of important environmental, social, economic, and political outcomes, and thereby human well-being broadly conceived. The Quality of Government (QoG) approach directs attention to issues such as impartiality in the exercise of public power, professionalism in public service delivery, effective measures against corruption, and meritocracy instead of patronage and nepotism. The 38 chapters in this handbook offer a comprehensive, state of the art overview of this rapidly expanding research field and also identify viable avenues for future research. The initial chapters focus on theoretical approaches and debates, and the central question of how QoG can be measured. The remaining chapters examine the wealth of empirical research on how QoG relates to democratic accountability, ethnic diversity, human well-being, economic growth, political legitimacy, environmental sustainability, gender equality, social cohesion, and the outbreak of civil conflicts. A third set of chapters turns to the perennial issue of what contextual factors and policy approaches have proven successful (and not so successful) for increasing QoG. The QoG approach both challenges and complements important strands of inquiry in the social sciences. For research about democratization, QoG adds the importance of taking state capacity into account. For economics, the QoG approach shows that in order to produce economic prosperity, markets need to be embedded in institutions with a certain set of qualities. For development studies, QoG emphasizes that issues concerned with corruption are integral to understanding development writ large Corruption Has Become A Central Issue In Current Policy Debates. This Handbook Provides State Of The Art Research On This Important Topic. It Demonstrates The Disastrous Effects Of High Levels Of Corruption For Most Areas Of Human Well-being And Presents Research Results About Strategies That Can Get Corruption Under Control. Corruption has become a central issue in current policy debates. Providing state of the art research on this important topic, this work demonstrates the disastrous effects of high levels of corruption for most areas of human well-being and presents research results about strategies that can get corruption under control