Contributions

  • Edward L. Glaeser (Editor) - Contributor
  • Claudia Goldin (Editor) - Contributor

Publication

2006-04-14 - University Of Chicago Press

Language

English

Word Count

96,000 words, Guess

Page Count

384 pages

Physical Format

Hardcover

Identifiers

and 3 more
  • Library of Congress Control Number2005022496
  • LibraryThing859555
  • Goodreads1515178

Classifications

  • LCCHV6783.C784 2006
  • LCCHB1

Description

"The United States today, according to most studies, is among the least corrupt nations in the world. But America's past was checkered with political scandal and widespread corruption that would not seem unusual compared with the most corrupt developing nation today. We construct a "corruption and fraud index" using word counts from a large number of newspapers for 1815 to 1975, supplemented with other historical facts. The index reveals that America experienced a substantial decrease in corruption from 1870 to 1920, particularly from the late-1870s to the mid-1880s and again in the 1910s. At its peak in the 1870s the "corruption and fraud index" is about five times its level from the end of the Progressive Era to the 1970s. If the United States was once considerably more corrupt than it is today, then America's history should offer lessons about how to reduce corruption. How did America become a less corrupt polity, economy, and society? We review the findings and insights from a series of essays for a conference volume, Corruption and Reform: Lessons from America's History, for which this paper is the introduction that attempt to understand the remarkable evolution of corruption and reform in U.S. history"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site.

Description

The USA has a reputation for being amongst the least corrupt nations, but it was not always so. The contributors examine the ways in which widespread corruption, swindling & fraud was tackled in America & suggest ways in which such practices might be confronted elsewhere in the 21st century.

Subjects

Other Editions

  • Corruption and Reform: Lessons from America's Economic History (National Bureau of Economic Research Conference Report)HardcoverUniversity Of Chicago Press2006-04-14
Show 1 more editions

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