SERBIAN CITIZENS’ PERCEPTION OF CORRUPTION IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR - LEGAL AND SOCIAL-ECONOMIC COMPONENT

Abstract

As an emergent form of criminality, corruption belongs to traditional criminality, and is as old as society itself. This form of criminality takes various specific forms with socio-economic development, which is why the suppression of this negative social phenomenon is becoming more and more complex. Corruption has become an unavoidable determinant of every state and society, containing numerous factors of negative flows of interests of individuals and the collective. These negativities are one of the main causes of the great economic stratification in our society, with all the social and political consequences that stratification brings with it. Although citizens are aware of the harmfulness of this phenomenon, their perception of corruption is important, especially in the public sector. In this paper, the authors deal with the issue of the legal and socioeconomic components of Serbian citizens’ perception of corruption in the public sector. The issue of corruption as a factor endangering the economic and social system was specially addressed. Corrupt criminal acts according to positive criminal legislation were also dealt with, with special reference to statistical data related to these criminal acts. The paper also presents the results of empirical research regarding citizens’ attitudes about corruption in the public sector in the Republic of Serbia.