Culture, corruption and economic development: The case of emerging economies

This paper aims to examine specific cultural attributes which may be favourable to economic development or restrictive to corruptive behaviour. The indicators of GDP growth and GDP per capita, the Human Development Index (HDI), Hofstede's cultural dimensions and the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) were used within a two staged analysis on the sample of selected emerging economies between 1995-2015. The findings of the research outline the complexity of this topic and numerous interrelations among the involved variables. The paper emphasises the importance of understanding the cultural traits of societies and the motives for corruption, to be able to take appropriate measures to promote economic and human development and to combat corruption. Future studies could assess differences within cultural clusters of the emerging economies to allow further insights on a comparative level, increasing the possibility to find answers why different regions develop faster than others.