Corruption erodes people's beliefs in morality and justice
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7474160 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Miguel R Ramos (0000-0001-7151-1463, University of Birmingham, corresponding author), Marcelo Moriconi (0000-0003-3952-4744, Iscte – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa), Sibila Marques (0000-0001-7295-6923, Iscte – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa), Carla Branco (0000-0002-0974-5557, Iscte – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 47 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-02-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Political Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0162-895X • E-ISSN: 1467-9221 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/pops.70110 |
| OpenAlex | W7125589084 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 38 |
In this research, we argue that corruption adversely affects individuals' perceived morality of politicians and their sense of justice, eroding some key values by which societies are guided. We further analyzed how the erosion of these key values might be negatively associated with people's well‐being. We found support for our contentions through multiple studies, including a cross‐national study comprising 82 countries surveyed over 32 years (Study 1, n = 210,207). This large‐scale study was further supported by two experimental studies (Studies 2 and 3, n = 449) elucidating the mechanisms and causality involved in these processes. Our findings showed that corruption leads individuals to ascribe lower morality to politicians, which in turn is associated with lower perceptions of justice. Our data show that this process is negatively associated with well‐being, contributing to a broader understanding of how corruption impacts individuals and societies
Causality (physics · Economic Justice · Language change · Morality · Perception · Trait · Corruption and Economic Development · Cultural Differences and Values · Social and Intergroup Psychology
The Social Psychology of Procedural Justice
The Belief in a Just World
Syndromes of Corruption
Beyond Money
Assumptive Worlds and the Stress of Traumatic Events
On the Importance of Being Moral
Corruption in Latin America
The Justice Motive as a Personal Resource
Antecedents and Consequences of System-Justifying Ideologies
To Believe or Not to Believe in a Just World? The Psychological Costs of Threats to the Belief in a Just World and the Role of Attributions
Social Identity, Self-Categorization, and the Communication of Group Norms
Comparative political corruption
Two Multilevel Modeling Techniques for Analyzing Comparative Longitudinal Survey Datasets
A Decade of System Justification Theory
Corruption, Political Allegiances, and Attitudes Toward Government in Contemporary Democracies
The Bias map
Beyond prejudice as simple antipathy
Social disadvantage and the self-regulatory function of justice beliefs
A model of (often mixed) stereotype content
Sources of Corruption
All for All
Psychological Perspectives on Legitimacy and Legitimation
The role of stereotyping in system-justification and the production of false consciousness
Is well-being U-shaped over the life cycle
Subjective well-being
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Perceived Corruption and Individuals' Life Satisfaction
| Highly cited | No |
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