
Malin Åkerström
Professor emerita

The etiquette of bribes–learning, teaching and knowing
Author
Summary, in English
How are bribes supposed to be given or taken? In this article, we study how individuals from countries with low tolerance of corruption learn, teach others and present themselves as knowledgeable about the etiquette of bribes. This involves the social practices of everyday corruption and petty bribes when working as ’strangers’ in countries where such exchanges are more common. Previous interviews on bribery with Swedish and Danish aid workers, and Swedish representatives from adoption organizations, were searched for descriptions of giving, receiving and avoiding petty bribes. We argue that an appreciation of the etiquette of bribes is important for understanding the social practices of giving and/or taking bribes. Such an etiquette is not ‘random’ but addresses and resolves practical and interactional concerns for the actors involved in those exchanges.
Department/s
- Sociology
Publishing year
2022
Language
English
Pages
231-246
Publication/Series
Nordic Journal of Criminology
Volume
23
Issue
2
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Routledge
Topic
- Sociology (excluding Social Work, Social Psychology and Social Anthropology)
Keywords
- bribes
- corruption
- Etiquette
- interviews
- practices
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 2578-983X