Streetlight Effect in Corruption Measurement: Theory and Application to Russian Traffic Police

Tom Eeckhout, Timur Natkhov, Leonid Polishchuk and Koen Schoors
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Tom Eeckhout: Department of Economics, Ghent University, Belgium
Timur Natkhov: Laboratory for Institutional Analysis, HSE University, Russia
Leonid Polishchuk: Department of Economics, Indiana University, USA
Koen Schoors: Department of Economics, Ghent University, Belgium

No 2025-004, CAEPR Working Papers from Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Department of Economics, Indiana University Bloomington

Abstract: Different types and patterns of corruption, which complement each other, are co-monotone, i.e. rise and decline in sync. Therefore, a narrow-based corruption index could serve as a cardinal measure of broader corruption that leaves no direct evidence but complements the observable part. We present a theory that supports such approach to corruption measurement and test it empirically using the case of Russian traffic police. We show that a corruption index that reflects anomalies in the distribution of prestigious license plates exhibits strong correlation with adverse outcomes of the overall corruption in the ranks and activities of traffic police, in accordance with the “corruption kills” dictum.

Keywords: corruption measurement; complementarity; supermodularity; status consumption; forensic economics; corruption in traffic police Classification-D91; E26; K13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 34 pages
Date: 2025-09
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