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ChapterOne
CorruptionRisks
TheoreticalandMethodologicalPremises
ofSociologicalResearch
1.Corruption.ASociologicalPerspective
Methodologicallyspeaking,sociologicalstudiesaimatacontextualinterpreta-
tionandunderstandingofindividualandcollectiveactionsfromaperspective
ofsuchtrans-personalphenomenaassocialstructuresandsystems,values,
norms,andsymbolsofculture.Althoughpsychologicaldispositionsandmoti-
vationsmayberegardedascrucialfactorswhenitcomestoinvestigatinginto
theidiosyncraticnatureofsocialrealities,socialactionsareanchorednotonly
inindividualizeddispositionsorpurelyrationalincentivesaimingtomaximize
one’ssubjectivelyexpectedutilities.Therefore,itmeansthatsocialactionsare
alwaysinscribedinaframeworkofpre-established,objectifiedsocialfacts
whosestructuralcharacter—veryoftenexpressedasrulesandresourcespos-
sessed(seeGiddens1984;Sztompka1991)—ismanifestedby(andinscribed
into)individualorcollectiveagency.Inthisspecificway,personalchoicesor
motivationsarepermanentlyanchoredinaspectrumofpossessedresources
(wealth,prestige,powerorknowledge)andbehavioralrulestypicalofsocial
groupsandgroupingsinwhichanindividualtakespart.
Thesamecanbeappliedtotheproblemofcorruptionwhosebroader,typi-
callysociologicalcontextreferstothestructuralandculturaltransformations
thathavecharacterizedPolishsocietysince1989(cf.Rose-Ackerman2001,
179–214).AsMariaJaroszputsit:
Whenobservedandanalyzed,thetransformationstakingplaceinPolandafter
1989—alsoknownastheGgreatchangesyndrome”—authorizeustoadvance
athesispostulatingthattheconstructionofnewlyemergeddemocracywasac-
