Abuse of Power

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the social ramifications of police corruption as a suitable topic for investigation. It describes that numerous studies demonstrate that police corruption continues to be a significant issue in contemporary society. The author writes that integrity and social order go hand in hand, but human behavior can demean even the powers that be, e.g. police officers. The paper states that power can be a weapon and even among the law-abiding can be misused and abused. The paper analyzes the two types of corruption that are identified: monetary and bureaucratic corruption.

From the Paper:

"Since in any corrupt action the prospect, on the part of at least two actors, of a (personally defined) success of the interaction is what motivates the exchange to be undertaken, corruption is an attribute of a type of interaction. In corruption two or more people are involved who anticipate a successful outcome of the exchange relation. Since corruption involves at least one corrupter and one corruptee, it is the type of social action undertaken that constitutes corruption. This remark may seem rather superfluous. It is however important to keep in mind that corruption denotes a type of exchange relation because it explains one of its typical features in comparison with other (instrumental) illegal acts. Corruption is not a matter of 'partners in crime' but of 'criminal partnership' vis--vis a legal regulation of interaction. Consequently, the negative (victimization) effects of corruption are largely indirect. The victim of the corrupt interaction is often unaware of the harm done to him/her. However real the victimization as a result of corruption, it does usually not present itself immediately to the victim, but results 'secretly' in a loss of money or power (and is therefore often a source of fierce condemnation after the victimization has been revealed)."

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