Author(s):
1. Jelena Budak, Institute of Economics, Zagreb, Barbados

Abstract:
This paper investigates businessmen perceptions on corruption as obstacle for business and their attitudes towards corruption. The research is based on the survey conducted on the sample of over 1800 business owners and managers in Western Balkans region. Using the original survey data collected from February to June 2010 for seven countries – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, the paper explores businessmen views on how business sector is facing with corruption, and on the role of private and government agents to combat corruption. The empirical analysis based on data obtained from businessmen opinion survey is performed in several steps. The data are analyzed using descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The factor analysis has been performed at nine selected items from the questionnaire, each in the form of statement. Businessmen rated each statement on a 11-point Likert-type scale anchored by strongly disagree (0) and strongly agree (10). Three distinct factors were extracted: (1) Understanding corruption as a “greasing wheel”, (2) Self-initiative to combat corruption needed, (3) Corruption is a government-related issue. In the next step, the analysis of variance has been performed to test the effects of country of origin, perceptions on corruption being an obstacle for business, corruption experience, and opinions on corruption trends in the past decade on factor means. The main research question was if there were differences in factor means related to the: i) country of origin, ii) perceptions on corruption being an obstacle for business, iii) corruption experience, and iv) opinions on corruption trends in the past decade. Country of origin strongly determines businessmen attitudes on corruption as measured on all three factors, probably due to the different social and economic set-up and heritage. Businessmen with corruption experience tend to justify corruption as greasing wheel more than “clean” respondents with no corruption experience. Generally businessmen that see corruption rising in their country would attribute this problem exclusively to the government. This group of respondents accordingly expect government authorities to take the anti-corruption lead. Government response to the corruption issue rather than strengthening individual or private anti-corruption initiative is a prevalent opinion of businessmen who consider corruption as big or enormous obstacle for their business. Country-specifics, business corruption experience, and different opinions on selected corruption-related issues showed to have influenced businessmen attitudes towards corruption. Since the large majority of companies in the survey sample are young and small enterprises up to 50 employees, results of this research study provide useful policy recommendations. Findings could help countries in Western Balkans region to design more entrepreneurship-friendly environment.

Key words:
corruption, businessmen attitudes, perceptions, corruption experience, Western Balkans

Opening paper:
Yes

Date of abstract submission:
14.06.2011.

Number of visits:
688

Conference:
REDETE 2011

Applied paper from author