DOES ANTI-CORRUPTION TRAINING MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

Abstract

The research paper aims to address the issue of corruption and fill the literature gap about the effectiveness of anti-corruption training in Kazakhstan. This study investigates the effectiveness of anti-corruption training among bachelor students in Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent. The research analyzes whether participation in anti-corruption training affects students’ tolerance toward corrupt behavior. By using a survey-based approach, respondents were asked to rate ethics scenarios from 1(non-corrupt) to 7(very corrupt) to assess perceived corruption. 100 responses were collected from bachelor students aged 18-27+ by conducting an online survey through Google Forms. This methodological approach, introduced by Mancuso (1995) and later refined by Pelizzo and others (2008, 2019, 2023), has been utilized to analyze ethical standards in the public sector. The key analysis compares these findings with those of Pelizzo and Knox (2023), and by employing descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and logistic regression, the results illustrate that there is almost no effect of training on the tolerance of corruption among students. The research findings raise concerns about the effectiveness of current anti-corruption educational measures and suggest the necessity for improved or alternative training methods. The research provides valuable insights for anticorruption organizations in Kazakhstan, highlighting the need to refine the anti-corruption training to foster ethical decision-making and integrity among the students, and further the population.