Corruption and Education: Empirical evidence from cross-country micro-data

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Economics from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

This study uses two micro-level datasets to perform an empirical assessment of the role of education on the decision to be corrupt. Bribe payments are used as proxy for corruption. The results show that increasing the level of schooling increases the propensity to bribe. A model of costs and benefits is assumed and regressions are ran to evaluate the effect of education on an intrinsic and an extrinsic cost of being corrupt, measured by justifiability of corruption and perception of corruption, respectively. The estimates show education increases one’s intrinsic cost (decreases justifiability) and decreases one’s extrinsic cost (increases perception).