Distortions that affect macroeconomic outcomes are an important avenue through which we can explain differences in cross country output and productivity. In this thesis I concentrate on two types of distortions, political economy and informational distortions. In Chapter one, I build a model of intermediated corruption where interactions between government bureaucrats and those who bribe them are mediated by a third party. I show that intermediation has significant effects on the incidence of corruption and the prices entrepreneurs pay for permits. When corruption is particularly acute, measures that increase the frequency with which government bureaucrats are audited often have the undesirable result of increasing the prevalence of corruption because of intermediation. In Chapter two I explore the link between corruption and inequality by building a model in which tax collectors are corrupt. I find that as inequality increases, the frequency of corrupt transactions increases as well. I also find that where corruption is more severe, because wealthier individuals tend to pay lower taxes, inequality is higher. I perform a few quantitative experiments to better understand this linkage. Chapter three explores distortions that are caused by adverse selection in markets with search frictions. I find that when participants are concerned about the information they reveal through their interactions in the market, the distortions to liquidity are deeper and that equilibrium selection is significantly affected. I also find that markets with reputational concerns are more sensitive to outside shocks.

Police Corruption is a complex widespread phenomenon in many developed and developing countries though the intensity varies from country to country. The current study is one of several studies supported by the UAE government will explore the different ways of police corruption and examine the potential ways of external mechanisms to control and minimize police corruption in the state of Abu Dhabi, which is one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates. The methodology used for this research was by means of collecting data through a survey method distributed in the form of a questionnaire among a large population of police personnel and the public. The collected data was then analysed quantitatively and qualitatively. This research proved that unacceptable police behaviour existed (64.4%), with traffic, investigation and the immigration departments being the highest. Favouritism and nepotism have been identified as the most types of unacceptable behaviour which exists within the Abu Dhabi police force. Police officers (70%) agree to use violence and excessive force against suspects and (54%) believed that the public were worried about repercussions if any complaint was made about corrupt officers. It was established that unacceptable police behaviour exists in Abu Dhabi police force and traffic, investigation and the immigration departments have been identified with the highest levels of unacceptable police behaviour. Police corruption is more often a local police culture involving favouritism and nepotism that protects and even encourages unacceptable police behaviour. Finally, the research suggests the important role of media, public awareness, and training as remedies that should be adopted for instituting long term reforms. A combination of approaches, as well as federal supervision, is needed.

The Italian political crisis of 1992-94, often referred to as Tangentopoli, emerged after the revelation of endemic corruption throughout the political system. First and foremost the crisis saw the collapse of the main political parties, the Christian Democracy and the Socialist Party. In a different manner and only one year prior to this crisis, the former Communist Party, also underwent major changes and evolved into a social democratic party, the Democratic Party of the Left. Though this crisis was sparked by a corruption revelation, it became a catalyst for a change in the deformities of a political system, of the partitocracy, which was itself the product of Cold War conditions faced by Italy in the post-war period. The focus of this study has been to re-evaluate the causes of this crisis with particular attention to the role of the Cold War as the over-arching influence which directly and indirectly influenced many of the internal dynamics of the Italian political process. The hypothesis of this research was that the end of the Cold War in 1991 as a factor which provoked this political crisis, was far more important as a cause than has hitherto been acknowledged. The study examines the other indicated possible causes including the impact of the corruption revelations, the role of the magistrates in uncovering corruption, the economic crisis, the role of the new protest movement of the Lega Nord and finally the especially brutal equilibrium with Italian political forces re-established by the Mafia after 1992.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed December 3, 2007). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 318-343).

Thesis (M.A.)--Oregon State University, 2009. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 122-126). Also available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Sydney, 2007. / Title from title screen (viewed 26 March 2008). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Dept. of Sociology and Social Policy, Faculty of Arts. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print form.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 151-159).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--UCLA, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 126-137).

Thesis (LL.M.)--York University, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 195-205). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.)--Duquesne University, 2004. / Title from document title page. Abstract included in electronic submission form. Includes bibliographical references (p. 28-31) and abstract.