Original
When Do Citizens Support Corrupt Politicians? The Trade‐Offs Between Corruption and Competence
Abstract
ABSTRACT The intriguing paradox of wide public disdain for corruption alongside popular corrupt politicians exists globally. By speaking to public ethics theory and rational choice theory, this study examines the trade‐off in which citizens tolerate corrupt officials in exchange for their competence to deliver public benefits. Using a conjoint experiment embedded in a sample of 30,521 surveys across 60 cities from 33 nationalities (regions) in 2023, this study yields three findings. First, mayoral candidates' economic performance mitigates the negative impacts of corruption on citizens' support. Second, although citizens are more likely to tolerate corrupt yet competent politicians, they still value honesty considerably more than competence. Third, citizens in contexts with less corruption and lower‐income citizens are less inclined to support corrupt politicians and more resistant to exchanging integrity for competence. This study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the mechanisms underlying citizens' mixed attitudes toward political corruption and competence.
中文
公民何时支持腐败政客？腐败与胜任能力之间的权衡
摘要
摘要：公众普遍厌恶腐败，却又支持腐败政客，这一引人注目的悖论在全球范围内存在。本研究对话公共伦理理论与理性选择理论，考察公民为换取官员提供公共利益的胜任能力而容忍腐败官员的权衡。研究采用联合实验，嵌入2023年在33个国家（地区）60个城市收集的30,521份调查样本，得出三项发现。第一，市长候选人的经济绩效缓解了腐败对公民支持的负面影响。第二，尽管公民更可能容忍有能力但腐败的政治家，但他们仍然认为诚实远比能力重要。第三，在腐败程度较低的环境中，公民以及低收入公民更不愿意支持腐败政治家，也更抗拒以正直换取能力。本研究有助于更细致地理解公民对政治腐败与能力持混合态度背后的机制。
关键词
政治腐败、胜任能力、公民支持、联合实验、政治伦理、理性选择