The case study format used in this volume was developed at the Centre for the Study of Corruption (CSC), based at the University of Sussex. It has been extensively field-tested amongst students and forms the basis for an entire module of our online MA in Corruption and Governance.

Case studies are a widely used tool in campaigning and policy-making, both in relation to corruption and other subjects. In an educational context, they are perhaps most frequently and systematically used in business schools, with the Harvard format being widely recognized as an effective device for practical analysis. The CSC Case Study Template is designed to allow a systematic analysis of a case; a judgement to be made as to whether it is or is not a case of corruption; and the presentation of information in a readable form that has multiple end-uses, including policy-making, advocacy, campaigning and education.

We are not offering a theory about corruption, although readers may tease one or more out from the case studies. Our faculty discussions have many times debated the extent to which rational choice is the nearest it is possible to get to an overarching explanation for corruption, or whether it is merely one of several means of analysing the problem. But we do not approach our case study analysis with a single theory that we are trying to illustrate. Indeed, with contributors from a range of disciplines using the same analytical template, one of our findings is how widely theoretical interpretations can vary.

Although we do not offer a single theory of corruption, we are instead offering an approach to anti-corruption problem-solving. The theory behind this approach is simple: if you have a good understanding or diagnosis of the problem, you are more likely to find a solution, and the diagnosis needs to examine a case from angles that include the harm, the benefits, the enabling environment, systems failures and the effectiveness of penalties. The CSC Case Study Template is designed to give such a description of a corruption problem, combining a concise narrative with a rigorous analysis from all angles, including the problem of how it came to happen.

An underlying observation is that there are plenty of successes in tackling corruption, not just failures.