June 9, 13.30–14.30
Room: Antarktis
Chaired by
Valeriya Mechkova
Assistant Professor
University of Gothenburg
Presenter
Edérson Dos Santos Alves
Law Professor, International University of La Rioja
Co-Author
Luis Renato Vedovato, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp)
Title
Local Public Administration's Role in Multidimensional Poverty and Human Rights Violations in Brazil: Insights from Botuporã
This study investigates the role of local public administration in perpetuating multidimensional poverty and human rights violations in small municipalities, focusing on Botuporã, Bahia, Brazil. Utilizing the consensual approach to multidimensional poverty developed by Joanna Mack and Stewart Lansley (1985), which is based on Peter Townsend’s theory of relative deprivation (1979), the research analyzes data from seven focus groups conducted in Botuporã in 2022. These discussions reveal a widespread consensus on unmet basic needs such as clean water, reliable transportation, healthcare, and education. Quantitative analysis using QoG and V-Dem datasets highlights correlations between weak governance indicators—such as low government effectiveness and transparency—and increased multidimensional poverty levels. Comparative insights from Latin America and Europe further emphasize the global relevance of these findings. The study concludes that centralized decision-making, inadequate infrastructure, and a lack of accountability mechanisms disproportionately impact marginalized populations, particularly those in peripheral areas. Policy recommendations include decentralizing administrative power, enhancing transparency, and prioritizing targeted investments in mobility and service delivery to ensure equitable access to fundamental rights enshrined in international frameworks such as Agenda 2030 and Habitat III.
Presenter
Jakub Lysek
Assistant Professor, Palacky University
Co-Authors
Silvia Bolgherini, University of Perugia
Marta Ponzo, University of Perugia
Title
Perception of Corruption Among Local Decision Makers: The Impact of Contextual and Individual Factors
This article investigates how individual and contextual factors shape local councillors’ perceptions of corruption across 28 European countries. Drawing on original data from the 2024 Return of the Councillors (RoC) survey, combined with indicators from the European Quality of Government (EQI) and V-Dem datasets, we assess how three types of trust – generalized, institutional, and particular – relate to corruption perceptions among municipal decision-makers. We argue that trust, political attitudes, and governance quality interact in systematic yet contextually contingent ways. Our multilevel models reveal that institutional trust is the strongest negative predictor of perceived corruption, followed by generalized trust. In contrast, particular trust (directed toward in-group political actors) is positively associated with corruption perceptions at the individual level, though this association varies across democratic contexts. Notably, the moderating role of liberal democracy alters the direction and intensity of trust-corruption dynamics: in less democratic settings, institutional trust has a stronger mitigating effect on perceived corruption, while particular trust shows the reverse pattern. While cross-country variations in perceived corruption are significant, the results suggest that councillors’ individual-level dispositions – especially their levels of trust – are more robust predictors than structural or institutional context alone. These findings challenge simplistic geographic divisions and call for further exploration of how local trust ecosystems and democratic quality shape elite attitudes toward corruption.
Demscore Conference 2025