Corruption - economic growth relatinship

Recently, corruption is becoming a gradually increasing social problem worldwide. The crime of corruption is committed in both private sectors and government offices in various ways. It concerns government, individuals, community and all humans and prevents development of countries. Because corruption is a secret practice by its very nature, it influences macroeconomic measures in economies negatively, such as investment, growth, and income distribution. If not prevented, corruption destroys fundamental values; such as senses of trust, justice, social harmony and equality that keep community on its feet. Consequently, it causes chaos in a society where there are individuals that do not trust each other, run after illegal income when they get opportunity. So, in this thesis study the definition of corruption was made, its causes were investigated, preventive measures were discussed. In literature-studies carried out on corruption, there were views about the positive and negative effects of corruption on economic growth. Despite this, also there were other studies that could not find any effect. Thus, articles published in literature on this topic were scrutinized, data obtained were analyzed, results were presented and recommendations were made. Key Words: corruption, economic growth, international transparency