I am planning to work on citizens' propensity to corrupt or resist corruption. I would very much appreciate an insight from someone who's done some work on the topic or willing to share a piece of literature. Best.
Yes, a whole literary genre exists precisely on this theme: the picaresque novel, initiated in sixteenth-century Spain and imitated all over the West. I understand that this genre may ultimately derive from the Arab genre of the maqamat. Critical theory and history of the picaresque genre could fill entire libraries. A famous piece of literature would be "The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes." The "pícaro" or rascal is by definition the anti-hero, who looks at established social values upside down and tries his best to insist on his own innocence but never quite convinces the reader. "Huckleberry Finn" by Samuel Clemens is probably the best-known picaresque novel written in the U.S.
I assume that by 'corruptors' you mean those who give the bribes. As far as that goes, one source could be the 'World Bank Enterprise Surveys—What Businesses Experience.' As far as I know, the surveys, for example, ask firms direct questions and collate the percent of firms expected to give gifts: (1) to public officials "to get things done"; (2) in meetings with tax officials, (3) to secure government contract, and the value of the gifts as a percentage of the contract value; (4) to get an operating license; (5) to get an import license (6) to get a construction permit; (7) to get an electrical connection; and (8) to get a water connection. The Surveys also check on: (1) the percentage of public transactions where a gift or informal payment is requested; (2) the percent of firms experiencing at least one bribe payment request; and (3) the percent of firms identifying corruption as a major constraint.
The data may not be ideal, because it may still not be clear if the potential corruptor actually participated in the corruption request. But you are safe assuming that the answer is positive or else the corruptor's request was not fulfilled. Even more importantly, the extent to which the corruptor was the initiator of the corrupt transaction may not be clear. But you are not going to obtain such data, because the corruptor will not want to confess to be willfully breaking the law.
Omotunde E. G. Johnson
Actually it depends from which point of view you want to study corruption. I advise you to use the experimental methodology. If you are interested in, I can recommend you some papers.
The approach sounds interesting. I look forward to some papers. Thanks in advance.